


Vicarious

by ChocolateShipCookie



Category: Hunger Games Series - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Developing Relationship, Drama & Romance, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Porn with Feelings, Sex
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-02
Updated: 2021-01-24
Packaged: 2021-03-05 22:07:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 26
Words: 61,515
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25672552
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChocolateShipCookie/pseuds/ChocolateShipCookie
Summary: What if the Hunger Games were real? Right now, in our "real" world, thanks to an obscure organization, the Hunger Games are taking place. And it's not as unlikely as you might think.The Hunger Games modern AU Rated M for later chapters. Hayffie - Everlark
Relationships: Haymitch Abernathy/Effie Trinket, Katniss Everdeen/Peeta Mellark
Comments: 62
Kudos: 43





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This story was inspired by several things, but the most important one, that gave its title to it, is the song Vicarious by Tool. I invite you to go and listen to it before reading!   
> Please leave a review if you liked it or be kind if you didn’t. And as I’m not a native English speaker feel free to correct me if you see something wrong on that subject, I’ll take all advice!   
> I leave you with the story now…

Vicarious 

Eye on the TV  
‘Cause tragedy thrills me  
Whatever flavor it happens to be like  
Killed by the husband  
Drowned by the ocean  
Shot by his own son  
She used the poison  
In his tea  
And kissed him goodbye  
That’s my kind of story

It’s no fun until someone dies

Chapter 1 

Haymitch was sitting in his armchair. Watching the news on TV. Drunk.  
As always.  
And it was only noon. 

He was sipping his best bourbon on this fine day of June. That day deserved nothing but the best! He had opted for a 20 year old Blanton. A gift from one of his very rich, very arrogant, mine director of a neighbor.  
Life in Kentucky had its virtues…

The news were depressing as always. Mine incidents, economical crisis, suicides, murders… Dead people, dead people, dead people… That’s all they have to say, again and again. Even him didn’t dare make a drinking game out of it. Even just a sip for each death announced in one day would be enough to kill the strongest drunkard of the country.  
His life came down to that. Death. Everywhere.   
He had lost, killed, and almost been killed.   
And everywhere he looked, that was all he could see.

Whatever he does, it’s the only thing he ends up doing.   
Killing. Willingly or not. 

The idea of people feeding on these news, like it was just some entertainment was enough to make him gag. How can they watch that and do nothing? How can they watch people die and just change the channel with a “oh, how sad” and laugh the next minute watching SNL?   
And the more gruesome and detailed the better…

Always the same hypocrisy. “As long as it’s not me...”   
Well, it doesn’t just happen to others. 

If only they knew…

If only they knew that for some sick people, it is entertainment.   
He has been part of it. He did come back from it. He fought for his life, and now, he is a prisoner.

He is torn from his dark and bitter thoughts by an alert on his phone.   
He know perfectly well what it is, but he unlocks the phone and reads it. He has to.   
The annual Discord message from CapitolBot.  
“4:00 pm”  
followed by an incomplete link and a key to crack the code and complete it.   
They really love games. Twenty-four years ago it was a simple coded letter in the mailbox. Now they have more and more technology at their service, and they enjoy it. Like butchers with newly sharpened blades.

He knows what’s gonna happen in a few hours. He doesn’t want to know. But he will have to. Because he is the only one who can. 

When the hour comes, he is in front of his computer. Waiting for the page to appear.   
When it does, the screen is black, with a symbol in the top center. A stylized bird. The “Capitol Organization” emblem. “A phoenix rising from its ashes” they say.   
Under it the bird is a table. Three columns, the middle one with numbers from 1 to 12. The two others still empty.   
He waits as they are filled up one after the others.   
They are filled with names and ages. Girls on the left and boys on the right. Etiquette, ladies first.  
Glimmer Taylor 17, Marvel Johnson 17, Clove Adams 15, Cato Reed 18…   
He waits for the last column to get filled. His column.   
The names of the two children, “tributes”, he will have to accompany to their certain death. He’d rather kill them directly than giving them false hopes. Than treating them like cannon fodder. Than sending them into that gladiator arena.   
He knows they will die. They always do. 

24 children are going to disappear tomorrow.   
Papers, news and politicians will talk about it. They will say that it is terrible, like every year. When someone will point that it is odd and that it happens every year, they will put the blame on Cults or chance, like every year. When someone will ask why nothing is done about it, they will say that it’s complicated -and make the spoiler disappear too -, like every year.   
Like if they didn’t know. Like they didn’t take part in it…   
24 families will cry, wait, and hope. Believing that their child will come back, that he is only lost and alive somewhere, that they have been kidnapped by a madman and that the police will find them.   
They will see their cases being closed, most likely labeled “fugue” or “unexplained disappearance”.   
They will never know. They will never know they are dead. They will never know how they died. Why they died.   
They will never know that their child has been taken to serve as a toy, as a jester for the sickest people on this fucking planet. 

… Rue Ward 11, Thresh West 18

Only one child will come back.   
Only one will come back to his home, but not to his life.  
He will have to bear the weight of his actions. He’ll have to live with the lives he has taken to save his own. He’ll have to suffer the looks of those whose child didn’t come back. He’ll have to endure the stares of those who will recognize him, know him. He will have to stomach knowing his tormentors and knowing that he can’t do anything against them.   
Against the Games. 

Only one will come back. 

And when he sees the names appear, he knows. He knows that his chances are low. That, once more, the odds hasn’t been in his favor.   
And he drinks.   
He toast to them.

Peeta Mellark 16

Primrose Everdeen 12


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 

This Thursday of June was a beautiful day.  
It was the first day of Summer. The sky was pure and blue as far as the eye could see, the sun was bright and high and the wind was soft and warm.   
One would have called it a perfect day. 

The young Primrose Everdeen had had a great day at school.  
She had had good grades at her last exams, her teachers were very encouraging and pushing her to pursue her dream of becoming a doctor.   
She had laughed with her friends, organized a movie night on Saturday and was planning on taking advantage of it to get closer from her friend James. He was so handsome, dark hair, grey eyes… And cute. And intelligent. And funny too...  
Since her dad was dead in a mine incident, her mother was kind of… out of order. She had organized that night for herself as well as for her mother. Having people other than her and her sister around was the only way to make her act almost normal. Like a mother ought to.   
As she was coming back from school, she decided to take the shortcut through the Meadow. It was a big park, leading from the center of the town, near her school, to the suburban areas. The end of it was only a few streets from her home. It could be dangerous sometimes, as it is not very well provided in public lightning, and she would never have done that in Winter. But it was Summer, the sun was shining and it was not even four in the afternoon.   
She made use of this bucolic stroll to pick a few wild flowers for her mother. The meadow was surrounded by the town on one side and woods on the other, and looked like a huge fallow field, full of wild flowers of all forms and colors. It was absolutely marvelous. And if you walked a little into the woods, you could find a small lake -it was in that lake that she and her sister had learnt to swim with their father. She opted for a mix of white asphodels, blue cornflowers, yellow buttercups, mauve bluebells and red poppies, with some grasses for greenery. 

She was walking happily, her bag on her shoulder and her bouquet in one hand when she reached the street at the edge of the Meadow. She was on the sidewalk, looking right in front of her, lost in her thoughts. She did not notice the black car driving slowly behind her. She had not noticed it earlier in front of her school either. 

She saw it when it drove past her, at walking speed and stopped a few meters away. It was a big sedan car, certainly very expensive, with tinted windows. When she got at its level, the rear passenger window slowly opened, revealing a smiling woman. 

She was… breathtaking. She had never seen such a beautiful woman before. Especially not here in her small town in the middle of nowhere. That woman belonged to the spotlights and glitters of LA, California, not to the soot and dust of Seamville.  
She had a huge smile with too many perfect white teeth encircled by full red lips. Her skin was so light and her eyes so blue she looked like a china doll. Her copper hair was pinned up her head in a serious chignon. Her make up was on fleek, and her dress was obviously couture.   
“I am truly sorry to disturb you my dear, but I am completely lost. Could you help me? Would you know where Jabberjay street is by any chance?” - Jesus, even her voice was soft and harmonious!  
She knew that street. It was a very little one in the rear of the city, in the poorest part. What would a woman like her do there?   
“Hum, yes no problem, it’s in the opposite direction, about 10 minutes from here heading north but ...” she was cut mid-phrase.  
“Oh! I have an idea, perhaps you could come in with me and guide me there. I would be easier.”  
That was weird, but she seemed nice…   
“Oh! … I don’t know… I have to be home soon and.. I don’t know you...”  
“Oh God! Of course! Were are my manners!” she outstretched a hand through the door “My names is Jane, delighted to meet you...”  
“Prim.” she answered shaking her hand hesitantly.  
“...Prim” She repeated with the sweetest smile Prim had ever seen. “Now would you please help me? I have a very important and dear friend to meet there and I really do not have much time. I hate being late!”   
“Hum, maybe I can help you a little, but I cannot go there, it’s too far from my home. I can guide you to the neighborhood if that’s good for you.”  
“That would be terrific! Thank you dear!”  
The woman shifted to the right side of the backseat to make room for her. Prim opened the door and put a foot in the car when…

“PRIM!” 

Her sister, Katniss, was running in the street towards her. She was coming back from her archery practice and still had her bow in her hand.

“PRIM! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!”

“Oh… I was just helping her… she was lost and...”  
“And you thought climbing in the car of a perfect stranger would be a good idea?” Katniss scolded her, pulling on her arm to put her back on the floor. 

Prim took a look at the woman in the car. She was silent. And… livid?   
Her face was the complete opposite of what she was before. She looked stunned. Like if something had gone wrong and she was at a loss with what to do. Her eyes were wide opened and her smile had disappeared, her jaw was hanging , giving a horrified expression to her face. 

“Who are you?!” Katniss barked.  
“Oh… Hum, I... I am …sorry ... Hum...” The woman stammered while throwing glances to the front of the car, silently pleading someone to help her.

She was about to retort something when Katniss was hit by the front door that was opening. Two huge, muscular and imposing men, dressed in black, got out of the car. One of them slaped her in the face and she fell on the floor. Then they took Prim by the arms, one each, and pulled her in the air like a rag doll. She was screaming her sisters name, crying, her feet flying in the air in a vain attempt at freeing herself.   
Katniss got back on her feet and tried to attack one of the colossus, but he didn’t react to her punches and her kicks. 

“What are you doing? What are you gonna do to her?!” she screamed at the woman, clutching the door.   
“Nothing at all my dear. Do not worry, she will be back in no time.” She responded with calm, trying to sound reassuring. 

“No! NO! Where are you taking her? STOP! STOP!” she was crying now, desperate to save her sister. “Take me instead! TAKE ME!” 

She didn’t know what else to say. She didn’t want anything to happen to her sister. She would kill to save her. She would die for her. She could not bear the idea of Prim getting hurt.   
Prim was all she had. Her whole family. 

“Whatever that is, please, leave her alone… I would do anything...” 

The woman looked at her in the eyes, considering her for a minute. She lifted a hand to the men through the door.   
“Wait!” Th men stopped, waiting instructions. “Release the girl. Let her go.”  
Prim fell on her bottom and Katniss ran to her, taking her into her arms, hugging her, squeezing her. But Katniss could still feel the presence of the two henchmen behind her. And she wasn’t really surprised when they separated her from her sister. Pulling them back on their feet. She tried to kept her hold on her sisters hand but one of the men took her away, throwing her on his shoulders, while the other shoved her into the car.

The woman was smiling again. A smug, satisfied and excited smirk. 

“I believe we have a volunteer.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things are becoming serious here… 
> 
> Please leave a review if you liked this chapter! It motivates me a lot!  
> x


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 

On that morning, Effie was not in a good mood.   
She got ready anyway, the way she always does on Reaping day.   
She took a long and hot shower. Taking time to think about what she was about to do. What she had been doing for a decade now… She was so unlucky. She had become an escort and she had been assigned to the worst division, district, of the country. Ten years… No escort had ever stayed in the organization that long… Better to still be there than to be “fired”, but … She was a failure…   
Well, no! That was not just her fault! If she hadn’t been condemned to team up with this drunkard, maybe one of their tributes would have won. He was of no help at all, she had to do all the work. It was supposed to work in team, not solo. Not her fault if he didn’t believe anymore.   
But she refused to become like him. Hopeless.

Come on! This year might just be the one!   
Cheer up! 

When she got out of the shower, she put on her bathrobe and sat at her dressing table to do her make up. She opted for heavy foundation, powder, contouring and peach blush. She traced a perfect winged liner and put on false lashes that touched her eyebrows. And her final touch, cherry red lipstick.   
She pulled up her hair in a tight chignon at the back of her head.  
And finally she stood for a while in front of her closet, choosing the perfect dress. She chose a dark green one, with puffy long sleeves and a pencil skirt, and a large creamy white silk belt at the waist with a gold buckle the size of a hand.   
And, of course, her highest classic black Louboutin. 

She studied herself in the mirror for while, checking that everything was perfect. She was satisfied with was she was seeing, except for one thing...  
Come on Euphemia! Eyes bright, chin up, Smile on!   
Now everything was perfect!

She climbed in the sedan, reviewing the profiles of her two tributes.   
Amazing how fast they can gather so much information and personal details… 

The girl was too young, too sweet… Poor thing... She was no Victor. Not even a fighter.   
She was not her chance... She was also sad for her of course but she couldn’t help thinking about herself first. Education sticks…   
The boy on the other hand… He was strong, intelligent, maybe a little too kind but survival instinct could do miracle with that. Maybe he could win. If she and their “mentor” - if he could be considered like that - were good enough.   
She decided that this year, she would succeed in taking him with her chasing money from the sponsor. She had to win and she could not do it alone.   
She couldn’t take it anymore. 

xxx

For the boy, the strategy was the “helping the new girl in town”.  
They had parked a moving truck in the back alley behind his parents bakery, and all she had to do was putting her sweetest smile on, and ask him to help her with her heavy furniture.   
Everything went as planned.   
Once he had been in the truck, Darius had knock him out and Purnia had closed the door. Easy.   
Now the two of them were driving the truck to the district headquarter and she was on her way to get the girl.   
They followed her for a while before approaching her. They waited until she was in a quiet street, with few houses. Most of them still empty as their inhabitants were at school or at work. 

However, this operation did not really go as planned. 

She was now facing a tall dark haired girl. She must have been 16 or 17 years old. She could have been beautiful if she had made an effort, putting some make up on and choosing more flattering clothes. The frown and visible hostility on her face weren’t helping either. But she couldn’t really blame her for that...

“So… I am Effie Trinket, I’m delighted to meet you. What is your name dear?” she asked, trying to use her sweetest voice and hide her nervousness. She had never had a volunteer, she had even never seen one. She doesn’t even know if there had ever been any… except for the careers of course.   
“… Katniss” the girl answered reluctantly with a challenging tone. She was staring at her with a defiant look and a disgusted expression on her mouth, her eyes never leaving Effie.   
“Well, Katniss dear, do not worry for your sister, I will make sure she is safe and I’ll do everything I can to bring you back to her.”  
“Why? What are you gonna do to me? Where are we going?”   
“We’ll explain everything, be patient.”  
The girl snorted, “Yeah, I will wait until the police come and kick your ass.”  
“Language!” she retorted, appalled by her vulgarity. “I’ll have to work on that”, she muttered to herself. 

The rest of the drive to the headquarter was made in a heavy silence. You could have cut the air with a knife. Effie could not really be mad at the girl, her reaction was after all perfectly normal, but she didn’t like her attitude. She was rude, blunt, and arrogant. She would be difficult to work with. Too bad because she had everything to be a great fighter, she was strong, she didn’t seem stupid, and she already had a weapon. A waste if she knew one… 

They finally arrived to the headquarter. It was a small hut in the woods, apparently abandoned for years. The inside was empty except for an old wooden table, two chair -one broken – and a door. They went for the door, her first, followed by Katniss still held by the two peacekeepers. She opened it with the key she kept on the chain around her neck. It lead to steel stairs, lightened by blinding neon lights.   
They went down, to a big room, with concrete walls and floor and the same neon lights. The two other peacekeepers were already there with the boy, still unconscious.   
And Haymitch...

“Hey sweetheart! Took your sweet time! Couldn’t find the road?” He told her, coming closer, until she could smell his foul breath. Then his eyes finally fell on the girl behind her between the two peacekeepers. “You’re not 12.” he said pointing a finger at her.   
“Wow! How observant of you dear!” she deadpanned with sarcasm. “May I introduce you to Katniss Everdeen, our volunteer.” she said with a monstrous commercial smile, lifting her hand in front of the girl like a tele-shopping anchorwoman presenting her latest product.  
He stared at her and at the girl in turn. His mouth opened wide in obvious confusion and astonishment.  
“Close your mouth Haymitch, you’ll eat flies. If they don’t eat you first…” 

Then she head toward a short train, with only three cars. The first one was for the conductor, the middle one was the living room car, and the last was used for merchandises. It was using the old closed mines tunnels. They regularly have to change their means of transport, but so far this one had still not been been discovered, and it was one of her favorite. A secret subway using old mine tunnels. Sounds like a James Bond movie!  
They would take this train to Louisville and would change there for an official train of the organizati, until the CAPITOL Headquarters in the Rocky Mountains. 

“Come on everyone!” she said clapping her hands.

“We’re on a schedule!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, leave a review if you like the story and want more! ;)


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is the longest chapter and the hardest to write… It’s not the best I know it but be patient good things are coming!   
> As always, don’t be shy, leave a review! xx

Chapter 4 

The “living room car” was small. There just enough space for a sofa, two armchairs a coffee table and a TV set in a corner and a bar with two stools on the other. Needless to say, the already drunk middle aged man had found the bar straight away. The odd woman, Effie, was walking around searching something on her iPad. And the boy was sprawled in one of the armchair, his face in his hands.

Katniss hadn’t had the chance to really look at him until now. But now…   
“Peeta?!”  
The boy took his face out off his hands and turned to look at her with wide eyes.  
“Katniss?”  
The man turned on his bar stool to look at them, puzzled.   
“Wait, you two know each other?”  
Of course they knew each other, Seamville was a small town with only one High School, they were the same age and thus were in the same class, and Peeta’s parents owned the best bakery in town, situated just next to her mother’s pharmacy. How could they not know each other? They didn’t know each other very well and had never been friend, but they had met and talked several times.   
The man remained there, without a word but watching them with a thoughtful and almost cunning gaze. Well, that was what Katniss believed she saw in it, because his gaze was also very much glassy because of alcohol…  
“Well that’s a good thing! It will make everything easier!” Effie said with her most chirpy voice and an awful fake smile, supposed to hide an underlying ...embarrassment? Anxiety?… The man huffed and chuckled shaking his head left and right. She threw a murderous glare in his direction -glare he absolutely ignored – and cleared her throat before continuing her speech.   
“First of all, we want you to know that we are very happy to have you with us, even if it’s just for a little while!”   
*Peeta winced at this part of the sentence and Katniss opened her mouth but Effie spoke again before she could retort anything.   
“First of all, the introductions! I am Effie, Effie Trinket, and I will be your Escort. And here is Haymitch Abernathy, he will be your Mentor.”  
“Escort? Mentor? What for?” Katniss asked.   
“Patience my dear.” Effie told her way too gently. “I am coming there.”  
Katniss didn’t like it. She didn’t like it at all…   
“You have been chosen, well pulled out, to participate in the annual Games of the CAPITOL Organization. We, Haymitch and me, are here to help you winning the Games. We will do everything that is in our power. But for this, you need to trust us and listen to us. We are on your side.”  
It was certainly supposed to be comforting. But it wasn’t…   
Katniss was really becoming nervous, and began playing with her lucky charm in her pocket without realizing it.   
“What Games? What do you mean ‘coming back’? Peeta asked warily, tears in his eyes. He visibly wasn’t fooled by the smiles and reassuring speeches either.  
“Well, I am not going to explain you everything in detail now, you will be explained all the information you’ll need in the next train. But do not worry too much my dears, you will be treated like kings and queens, you will have everything you ever wanted! I’ll make sure of that before … Oh! Here we are! Up, up, up! We’re on a tight schedule! ”   
The train was slowing down and entering a huge white room with way too much light. Katniss’ eyes needed a moment to adjust but once they had, what she saw was unbelievable. 

They were in an underground train station, with an other train much bigger and much more modern than the last one, painted in black with a huge golden bird and “CAPITOL Organization” written in golden letters under it. The floor was made of tiles that looked like marble and the walls were of an immaculate white. The light was blinding. It was almost closer of a hospital than of a train station. 

She was taken away from her observation by the two same bodyguards who took her by the arms again. But this time they didn’t take her anywhere, they just kept her still on the platform.  
She saw the two men coming toward them, one stopped in front of her- and the other in front of Peeta - with an enormous syringe in his hand. He took her arm and sank the needle in her forearm.   
She felt something gliding under her skin. The sensation was equally painful and disgusting.   
They were immediately shoved into the new train. 

They were all sitting in the living room area again. Katniss was rubbing her forearm to ease the ache, and she could feel something in her flesh.   
“What was that? Are you gonna tell us what this is all about now?” she asked.   
Effie stood up, took two folders on a table behind her and handed them to her and Peeta.   
“Here! I am sorry, we are not supposed to say anything important before you got your trackers. In case you...”  
“Trackers?” Katniss cut her abruptly. For her defense, Effie truly looked sorry and a little sad, but she didn’t care. She wanted to know.   
“Yes, GPS chips if you prefer. They...”   
“What?! Like dogs?!”  
“Stop cutting me and let me explain, dear, you’re being rude.”  
Katniss was about to retort something but Peeta looked at her with a pleading look. He wanted to know too. She decided to let her explain herself and slouched in the armchair, slipping one hand in her pocket again.   
“Now. You have been chosen to participate in the 74th annual Hunger Games. All the history and the rules are detailed in the file I gave you, but in short, it’s a group fight. Like circus games. You will be thrown into an arena, and you will fight 22 other children like you, until there is only one left. The winner will be crowned Victor and will go back home.”  
“Like a big laser tag game?” Peeta tried, without much confidence.  
Effie smile gently at him but the answer was far less gentle to the ears.   
“Like I said, more like circus games. Like gladiators, if you prefer. But do not worry, you won’t be alone in the arena. We will do everything to help you...”  
“So, you’re basically telling us that we are going to fight until our most certain death...” Peeta said flatly, his eyes fixed on Effie but glassy, full of yet unshed tears.   
“No, I’m saying that you’re going to fight for your lives!”  
“Pot-eh-to, pot-ah-to” Haymitch snorted in the background. Katniss had almost forgotten him. He had been nursing his drink at the bar and had not said a word since the change. He turned on his stool to look a them, but stopped, his features taking a shocked and horrified expression.  
“HEY! What’s that?!”   
In less than a second, he was standing in front of her, snatching the golden brooch, she didn’t even remember taking out of her pocket, from her hands  
“How did you get this?!” He shouted at her face. She wrinkled her nose when attacked by the whiskey in his breath.   
“A friend gave it to me. As a lucky charm. For an archery competition.” She answered. “Now give it back!” she tried to catch it but he lifted his hand and took a step back. Quick for a drunk…  
“Who is she? What’s her name?”  
“Madge. Madge Undersee. What’s your problem? Give it back!” She stood up, firmly intending to punch him but Effie came between the two of them, hand lifted in a gesture of peace.   
“Enough! Both of you! Haymitch calm down and give me this!” She took the golden object from his hand, he didn’t react but his eyes never left Katniss’. “Now, Katniss, Peeta my dears, why don’t you take your folders and have a look at them in your rooms. Take your time processing everything and come back if you have a question. Anyway we will see each other again at dinner. Your peacekeepers will show you the way. I need a word with Haymitch.”

They followed their assigned gorillas to their rooms.  
On her bed, Katniss saw a thin laptop. Again, black with the same golden bird on it. Katniss tossed the file on the bed next to it, and ran into the small bathroom. She put water on her face, trying to get a grip on her emotions.

Anger, sadness, anguish, terror… 

That morning she was thinking about what her birthday present for Prim would be, and now… She was on a train driving her to her death.

She came back in the bedroom and climbed on the bed. She opened the file. There was a thick paper file and a DVD. Hence the computer then…   
She took it and put it into the player.   
“War, terrible war. Widows, orphans and motherless child...”   
What Katniss gathered of the presentation film was that those Games had been created by Nazis after their defeat to get their revenge on Americans, and that they were really organized seriously only in the late 70’s. Before that there had been tests, but it nothing conclusive.   
The file was far more useful.   
They talked about a man. Coriolanus Snow. A very rich business man, creator of the Organization. Apparently, that’s him who exhumed the concept of the Games and made a thing of it. He had built infrastructures, had invented new rules, had adapted it to the modern world.   
She didn’t bother reading all the praises about him and jumped to the rules part.   
24 children, “Tributes”, between 12 and 18.   
“Prim wouldn’t have stood a chance”, she thought.   
Either reaped or volunteer.   
She fell into this category. They will think that she had trained to fight. Or that she wanted to die…   
A cornucopia with weapons, food, medicine… An arena… canon fired for the dead… survival… fights…   
Too many information. Too many gruesome details. Pictures of the arenas, of the bodies. Blood, guts, war injuries… Pictures of the Tributes’ faces at the end of their last fight. Relieved, proud, happy… crazy. Their faces had many expressions but their eyes always had that glint of madness.  
The face of a victor they had labeled it. 

It was too much for her to take.   
She ran into the bathroom just in time for the content of her stomach to get into the toilets bowl and not sprawled on the floor. She cried like she never had. She cried for herself, she cried for Prim, she cried for all the others. She cried out of fear and disgust.

When she got back into her bedroom, it was already late and she had to get ready for dinner. A new outfit was waiting for her on the bed. A simple baby blue dress.   
She put it on as she made out her mind.   
She was determined to come back.  
She wouldn’t die to the hand of an old mad man.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5 

Once the children were out of sight and ear, Effie almost jumped on Haymitch.   
He was sprawled on the sofa, watching with empty eyes the whiskey twirling in his glass. 

“Haymitch what was that? You can’t attack one of our tributes like that! They are already frightened enough without you…”  
“It was Maysilee’s” he said in a low voice. She almost didn’t hear him under her own rant, but she did and the rest of it was caught in her throat.   
“What?”  
“The brooch. It was Maysilee’s. I am sure of it. I have seen it. On her chest. Covered with her blood. I could recognize it anywhere.”   
Effie was speechless. Well, almost. She could never be really entirely speechless.   
“Bu-but… how?” she stammered.   
“I don’t know… Her family must have taken it back when her body was returned. She was in the twelve last, so she had that honor.” He added with a bitter chuckle.   
“But how did it get to Katniss… what are the odds?...” she whispered to herself.   
He tried to answer anyway. He needed an answer to that himself.   
“She had a twin sister. By now she may very well be married and have a child about Katniss’ age…” He chuckled in his glass, gulping it bottoms up. “World’s so fucking small...”  
She automatically clicked her tongue at the swearword, but her heart and her head weren’t really in it.   
“Do you think it’s a sign? Like fate... “ she sighed.  
“Fate’s a bitch… If it is, it’s no good omen for her.” he muttered, standing up to go get a refill.   
“But she is strong and already has a weapon. They both are strong and clever!” She was getting back to her energetic self. “I am sure we have a shot this year Haymitch! We cannot let that get to us!”  
“Yeah...” he said thoughtfully.  
Persuaded he wasn’t truly listening to her, she insisted.  
“I am serious Haymitch! This time I won’t let you abandon them like you usually do! You will help me!” she almost yelled in his ear, slamming her hand on the bar to get his attention back.   
“Yeah! I said Yes! I can see we have a shot sweetheart I ain’t stupid!” He screamed in answer, waving dangerously his glass in the air.   
Effie softened, agreeably surprised by this easy answer. She had thought it would take much more coaxing to get him there.  
“Oh! Well…” she took his glass before he spilled it on her dress “We are actually really going to work together this year then. Cheers to that!” she added lifting his, her drink now.   
He chuckled and took the bottle by its neck.   
“Cheers!” he said taking a long gulp of liquor. “Yet... There is one tiny little detail your pretty red head forgot to take into account princess.” He told her with scorn, locking his eyes to hers, a smirk on his lips.   
She looked at him, puzzled, tilting her head to the side, waiting for him to develop. He leaned closer to her ear. She could feel his breath on her neck as he spoke, and she persuaded herself that it was his words and not the sensation that made her shiver.   
“We do have a shot. With both of them.”  
She stood there, still, weighting his words while he walked unsteadily to the door. He opened the door, and without looking at her, lifted the bottle in her direction.  
“’Night Eff!”  
And the door slammed shut behind him. 

He was right of course. They were both old enough and strong. They were both clever. They even were both handsome. They both were Victor material.   
And that meant that sooner or later, they would have to make a choice. 

xxx

She wasn’t surprised to see that Haymitch had not bothered coming to dinner, he might even have been passed out in his bed by now, but she was surprised to see that Peeta was already at the table, waiting for her with his folder and his own notes.   
“Good evening Peeta, I am glad to see you. The first dinner is rarely crowded.” she said with a gentle smile. She liked the boy. He was strong but he was also really sweet. His smile could get any girl to his feet.   
“I don’t want to miss any opportunity. I wanna know everything. I want to win! Or at least… ” The last sentence was muttered to himself but Effie caught it. She wondered how he was going to finish it.   
That’s the moment Katinss chose to enter the compartment, slamming the door open without a word. Effie couldn’t help thinking about Haymitch at this instant. They were somehow very much alike. The permanent scowl maybe…   
She sat at the table, at Effie’s right, facing Peeta.   
“How does it work?” She said bluntly, her elbows at each side of her plate.  
“Good evening to you too dear.” She said calmly, never departing of her smile. “What do you want to know exactly? I admit our meeting have been… cut short, and I really want to apologize for it.”   
“I wanna know why. There is no more revenge to take and the thing is directed by an American. So why? And how?”  
Effie took a deep breath, preparing carefully her answer.   
That was certainly the worst question, and she had to answer it every time. And even ten years couldn’t make it easier. And of course, trust Katniss not to beat around the bush.  
“Well, indeed you are right, this isn’t a question of revenge anymore. That man, Mr Snow, decided to recreate the Hunger Games because he… wanted to. And because he could.”   
She didn’t know how to word it. The whole thing was so twisted…  
“You see, he is a really wealthy man. And wealthy people can have everything. And once they have everything, they want more.”  
The children were watching her. Waiting for something more convincing.  
“He was not alone is the project. He had help from other very rich and very influential people to put it in place. They bought land, built the infrastructures, made all a network and so on. All this in order to be left alone in their project, to be able to enjoy the Games with impunity.   
They were both scowling. Peeta was biting his cheeks, keeping either tears or words in his mouth. But Katniss turned her gaze toward her again, clenching her jaw and clutching her knife. They knew what she was about to say. But they had to hear it to make it real.   
“Effie, why?” Katniss sneered through gritted teeth.   
She closed her eyes and let the words fly her mouth. It was so terrible to acknowledge it… She couldn’t keep her smile on for this. Even her couldn’t salvage that.   
“Entertainment… The Games are a reality show.”  
She heard what must have been Katniss knife banging against the plate, and Peeta’s chair being dragged on the floor. She opened her eyes slowly, only to see Katniss red with anger, her head in her hands, and Peeta white as a sheet, his head between his outstretched arms clutching the edge of the mahogany table, looking at the floor, trying not to be sick.  
“So we are dying because some crazy rich people are bored?” Katniss said, more like an observation than a question but Effie answered it anyway.   
“Well, that’s a way to say it, yes. But it is a little more complicated than that. There is more than the arena, the whole thing is much bigger. The fight is only the visible part of the iceberg.”   
It had the effect of capturing the children’s attention back. They were once more looking at her, curious and tense. Their eyes narrowed at her.   
So she kept talking. That was what she was best at. The things had never got so far so fast. Usually, the children were too frightened after understanding they were going to die and stayed in their room until the arrival at the Capitol. Or were very quite at least.   
They never wanted to know about all that. They just… suffered it.   
“This is going to be long, please listen attentively and do not cut me.”  
They simply nodded.   
“The Games are what is called a Red Room. A livestream, broadcast on the deepest part of the Internet. It is very hard to get an access to it, you have to earn it. But once you have it, you are officially a member of the CAPITOL Organization. Only members of the Organization can watch the Games. There are three kinds of members.   
Those who work in the Games, who organize them, from the Reaping to the creation of the arena - as your Escort, I belong to this category. Those who just watch the Games for their… leisure. And finally, those you have to worry about, the sponsors. They are going to rank you, according to your strength, your attitude, your beauty, your temper, everything. There will be betting boards. You need to impress them. If you do, Haymitch and I will work to get money from them, and with that money, we will be able to help you in the arena.  
They were looking at her with big scared eyes, mouth gaping and hands in fists.   
Katniss was the first to come back to reality, shaking her head.   
“How.. how big is this thing? Who are they, the sponsors? How can something like that happen?...”   
She seemed to have a thousand more questions to ask but Effie stopped her by lifting a hand.   
“Much bigger than you imagine. Very wealthy and powerful people. And because they are wealthy and powerful.” she answered, a little too honestly maybe. “Now, we could talk about it for hours but it’s late and you need some rest, you’re upset, I understand. Go to sleep, think about it and we’ll talk again in the morning with clearer heads.”  
They all left the table, their plates still half full. 

xxx

Peeta couldn’t sleep.   
He had been turning and turning in his bed for more than an hour now. Not really surprising after Effie’s big speech... He accepted that sleep wasn’t coming that night and headed to the living room compartment. Maybe he could find something useful there. Information or distraction.   
He wasn’t expecting to see Katniss sitting with her legs in her arms on the sofa.   
“Can’t sleep either?” he said quietly not to startle her. She must have heard him coming because she didn’t even flinch.  
“Hm… I was thinking about my sister. She should have been here, not me.” she said. Her glassy gaze still focused on the coffee table.   
“Prim? What, How?” Prim was the sweetest creature Peeta had ever met. She would not even have hurt a fly. She was certainly their only customer who could tear off a smile from his mother.   
“She was the one reaped. I saw them trying to take her and I… ‘volunteered’ as they say… Oh God I have to go back to her..” She sighed, burying her face in her hands.   
“She’s lucky to have you… I can hardly see my folks sacrificing themselves for me... ” he chuckled. He was only half joking though.   
“I only have her. And she only have me. Our mother...” she stopped, closing her eyes to hide the tears making them bright.“You have a whole family to go back to.”  
He scoffed at that.  
“I have nothing to go back to. No one! Nobody’s waiting for me. I’m sure they didn’t even noticed I was missing yet!” He almost shouted at her. He wasn’t even exaggerating. It would not be the first time they don’t notice his absence for a night or two.   
“Peeta... don’t say that. I’m...” she said after a heavy minute of silence.   
“No, I am sorry” he cut her. “That’s not your fault. I know what you must think, that I’m lucky, privileged, but… I’d rather have only a sister who loves me than a family who doesn’t know I exist.”   
He could feel Katniss’ eyes on him, but he didn’t want to meet them. It would either be anger or pity and he wasn’t ready for neither. He kept his eyes on the display of bottles behind the bar., considering taking a glass of something. After all, he didn’t have much time left, better enjoy it.   
“I understand.” She whispered. “We all have our life. Our misfortunes… I had love and you had comfort. We all want what we don’t have.” It wasn’t what he expected.   
“Yeah, I guess.” They stayed like that, staring at the floor. After a moment he laughed bitterly.   
“What?”   
“No, I.. I was thinking about what Effie said. About people always wanting more and more. We just wanted a simple, quiet and peaceful life and now we’re going to lose it because of…”  
“Greed, pride… thirst of power.”  
“Yeah….what we never even dared to dream about. They have so much that all they could find to distract themselves is...”  
“Taking others’ lives...” She sighed and they stood there for a few minutes, silent.  
He took a look at her and saw her heavy eyelids falling. Himself too was getting really tired.   
“Come on. Let’s get some sleep.” He said standing up and giving her his hand. “Effie said we would arrive at noon. According…”  
“To the schedule.” she finished for him, mimicking Effie’s accent. They laughed. It was more nervous than truly amused but it was good. Mocking Effie, her posh accent and her obsession for manners like normal teenagers would. 

And most of all, it allowed him to ear Katniss laugh.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And we will soon enter the core of the mystery…  
> Please as usual, feedbacks!   
> xxx


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am really sorry for the looong wait people! I had to take care of my now toothless cat… poor thing…   
> I am sorry if there are mistakes in this chapter. It the third time I re-read it but my brain doesn’t seem to function properly tonight… But I hope you will like it!  
> Thanks to those who waited and are still here with me!   
> xxx

Chapter 6

Haymitch did not sleep well that night. He did not sleep at all actually.   
No. He did better than that.   
He thought.  
He thought about them. The tributes. The sweet boy and the blunt girl.   
He thought so hard he even forgot to drink. 

The boy was perfect. On the paper. Sweet, strong, handsome face, bright smile, perfect hair. With a little training he could be a good fighter and he didn’t need any training to be charming.   
He would be a sponsor magnet. 

The girl was almost the opposite. She was strong, quick, pretty too, even if she didn’t seem to play that card. She already was a fighter and she had a temper. With a little coaching in the PR department – like learning how to smile for example- she would be perfect victor material too.   
He had to admit he kinda liked her. 

When he showed up at breakfast in the morning, he was happy to find painkillers beside his glass on the table. Effie must have thought about his usual hangover, but for once he didn’t need them for that. His headache was more likely due to lack of sleep and to much thinking. An activity he was no longer used to apparently.  
Effie was nowhere to be seen. Good! But the boy was already at the table, reading for what must have been the hundredth time his file.   
He sat in front of him and poured himself a good amount of coffee. Adding a “small” swig of whiskey from his flask. The boy watched him for a moment, waiting for him to take a gulp and to bite in a pastry before asking the questions that seemed to be burning his tongue. 

“How did you do it? How did you win?”

Woow! He wasn’t expecting that…   
Usually they ask about survival, fighting or nothing at all when they’re really pessimistic. No one ever asked him about his games. He doesn't really know what to say. He doesn’t know if he wants to say anything.   
He’s way to sober to think about that… 

“Wow! So eager!” better stay in his careless drunkard character for now “What do you wanna know boy? How I survived? Who did I kill? Believe me you don’t wanna take me as an example!” He tried to laugh nonchalantly but it ended up bitter. He was the example, that was the funny part of the joke…   
Peeta kept staring at him, waiting for him to develop a better answer.  
“Well… Listen boy. How I did survive my games is not the important thing for you right now. I’ll tell you how to win yours.” He said, taking the easy way out. “All you need to remember is water, shelter and staying away from the careers.  
“The careers?”  
Katniss voice came from behind him. She was standing in the threshold, her hair still wet from the shower, her eternal scowl already fixed to her face.   
“Mornin’ sunshine! Please join us.”  
Katniss sat with Peeta in front of him. “What are the careers?”  
“Effie told you about the Organization members right? Sponsors, watchers all this…” They both nodded. “Well, some of them, mostly among the watchers, buy children when they are young. Babies sometimes.”   
“Buy?!” Both children were watching him like if he had grown a second head.   
“Yes. Buy. Steal sometimes but rarely. Some people are that desperate you know, junkies, migrants, prisoners… Anyway. They train these children. They often are boy scouts and sport champions. Martial arts, archery, bodybuilding, fencing, running that kind of stuff. When they are old and good enough, they volunteer. Not like you did” He added pointing a finger to Katniss. “Some are told about the Games and they give their names at the Reaping. Other are just as ignorant as you are and their ‘parents’ give their names. They are treated just like you but they are way more prepared for the shit to come…”   
“Language Haymitch please!”   
He rolled his eyes and sighed. That voice was really hard to bear first thing in the morning.   
“Good morning to you too sweetheart! Always a pleasure...” He answered waving a hand -and a toast - at her behind him without bothering to turn and look at her properly. She scoffed and went to sit in the big leather sofa behind them.   
“Just… keep your distance with them. Let them kill each other but don’t meddle...” he resumed, closing the subject taking a big bite in his toast, spreading crumbs everywhere.   
“And they say the ‘odds are fair’… “ Katniss muttered after a few seconds of silence.   
Haymitch laughed at that. Fair… The world isn’t fair. He had been enlighten on this subject a while ago.   
“And what can we do about the sponsors?” Peeta really wasn’t going to let him take his breakfast in peace…  
“Well… Sponsors is as much your problem as ours” he began moving his finger between him and the sofa. “We have to collect as much money as we can for you. But for that, you have to be interesting. Deserve their attention.”   
“How do we do that?”  
“Having personality. Being charming, handsome, skilled. Be special. Remarkable.” He stopped and sighed, thinking about the fastest way to sum up the idea. “Seduce them. It’s not that different from earning peoples votes in Dancing with the Stars or succeeding at a job interview.” Not that he had ever done any of those things.  
“We are going to die because of them! I don’t want to seduce these perverts!” Katniss shouted, her scowl deepening from disgust and her cheeks red from anger.   
He could understand her point of view, but she needed to see further than the end of her own nose. He was sure she was very intelligent but she could be really narrow minded and impulsive sometimes. Especially when hit by emotions. And that wasn’t good in the arena. In the arena you must keep a cool head whatever happens.  
“Yeah but they are also there to save one of your asses and it better be yours! So make a choice sweetheart!” He had to be straight forward and to yell louder than her. It was the only way she would listen. He knew it. It was the only he would have listened. “Be your butt head self and die or be what they want you to be for a few days and live. It’s as simple as that!”  
She didn’t say anything for a while after that. Neither did Peeta. Both lost in their thoughts. Haymitch could finally eat his breakfast in peace. 

Or not. 

Effie came back to the table and poured herself a fresh cup of coffee glaring daggers at him with her lips pursed in a silent rebuke. He sighed and searched something reassuring to say to them. Being nice wasn’t really his best talent. He rubbed his face with his hands.   
“Listen kids, I know it’s much to take, but if you wanna win, you’ll have to listen to us. You have no chance without sponsors. We will do everything to help you with that, but you have to help us too all right? Help yourselves.”   
Peeta nodded distractedly, turning his spoon one way and the other in his hot chocolate. Katniss didn’t move an inch. Still scowling at her cup of coffee. 

Haymitch was standing up and go to his room -and his whiskey – when she finally spoke.   
“What will they do with us?”   
‘With’ not ‘to’. He understood what she meant. But he wasn’t sure it was the best moment to speak about that. According to the disappearance of her stupid smile and the way her eyes were bulging, Effie did get her meaning too.   
“You don’t need to know about that for now dear. Do not think about that at all, that is not relevant for the present.” She said smiling again. She had a real theatrical talent he had to give her that. Even if it infuriated him more than anything. She was all fake. If she was genuine sometimes it wasn’t for more than a second. A blink of an eye and it was gone.   
Katniss didn’t even acknowledge her intervention. Her eyes still fixed on him.   
She wanted truths, honesty. Not comforting half-lies.   
He took a deep breath.   
“It depends. The first three quarters to die are usually burnt. No trace behind. The last quarter, five dead kids in your case, will have the honor to be ‘returned’ to their families. Again, some careers are taken back by their parents when they want to.”  
“Returned?” Peeta asked, back in their conversation.   
“Yeah. It’s less suspicious if some are found. But not directly of course. They… stage it. Make it up. Depending of how they died. Thrown from a cliff, lost in the forest, drowned in the sea or a river, false murder, attacked by a bear, suicide...”  
“Enough! Haymitch!” Effie was white as sheet. Yeah he didn’t mention that she was the one who had to do that. She took them, she returned them. That was only fair. He wasn’t going to say it. The children didn’t need to antagonize her. At least not now and not because of him.

He hated her but he also needed her. And so did they. 

Then he turned towards the children. They weren’t faring much better than Effie. They were looking at him with round eyes and they seemed even more horrified by that than they were yesterday. He cleared his throat to get rid of the lump that had appeared in it.  
“Anyway. Don’t think about that now. Just… go get ready. We will arrive soon.” Arrived at the door he turned to Effie. “Take care of them.” 

She knows what he meant. Take care of them because soon I won’t be able to do it anymore.   
Once finally in his room, his bottle of whiskey in a hand, he collapsed on his bed, took a huge gulp of liquor and threw an arm on his eyes. Firmly intending to take advantage of the last hours of the trip to drink himself to sleep and catch up the sleep that avoided him that night. 

xxx

Once the door closed behind him, the children’s gaze came back to Effie.   
She didn’t really know what to say after all that scene. She wasn’t’ going to lie to them and tell them ‘everything is gonna be okay’. It will most likely not be. But she could entertain and nourish the little flame of hope and will they had.   
But for that, she needed a strategy. So she decided to get a little ahead of her schedule and begin the preparation right now. They were going to be perfect right out the train.   
“All right children. Breakfast is over. Now go back to your rooms. I will come to you and we will begin our work on the ‘sponsor seducing’ like Haymitch called it.” 

Katniss first. She was going to be a handful of work. The sooner the better!   
Effie entered her room to find her sprawled on her bed, an arm on her eyes, dressed with a old blue jean with holes and a shapeless band t-shirt half tucked in her belt. Very unladylike.   
“Up up darling! We have work to do!”   
Katniss winced at her piercing voice and stood up in front of Effie.   
“Well, it not that bad...” Effie muttered to herself absorbed in her thoughts.   
“Why, thank you..?” Katniss snorted.   
If she hadn’t been raised better, Effie would have rolled her eyes.   
“Not what I meant dear. You are very pretty but I was afraid there would be more to do with your posture and attitude. However we will have all lot of work in the smiling department.” she added with a smile and a wink. Katniss didn’t seem to take it badly.   
“I don’t really feel like smiling right now...”   
“I know dear.”she gently put her hand on her shoulder in a comforting gesture and added in a whisper. “Neither do I sometimes but I still do.” And she put back her best smile on her face.   
“So. What do you want me to do?” Katniss asked, bringing them back to the subject at hand.   
“Well, first of all stop looking at your shoes.” she answered putting a finger under her chin and lifting it. “Eyes to the horizon, shoulder back and down, back not too arched, feet parallel, hands either crossed in front of you or on your sides. Now, that’s the posture of a lady!” she exclaimed happily taking a step back to admire her work.   
“That’s not very comfortable….” the girl scowled (again…) frozen like a Madame Tussaud’s statue.   
“Just a habit to take.” Effie smiled at her while taking a box on the table. “Have you ever walked in heels?”   
Katniss eyes opened wide at the question. “No never. Do I really have to?” she winced with a panicked look in her eyes.   
“I am afraid so darling.” she laughed. What kind of girl doesn’t want to look like princess really?  
“What if I break my ankle before the Games? Wouldn’t be good, for me or for you.”  
“You won’t. That’s why I am here.” She took a pair of stiletto out of the box. “You are quite tall already so I choose small heels. No more than four inches. Those are three. I think that’s enough. We don’t want you to tower over Peeta.” 

The learning of the art of walking in heels took two full hours, a few frights and one real fall. But it also earned a real laugh from Katniss when she saw herself in the mirror walking like a ‘constipated duck’ -those were her words – so it was worth it. 

“Great! We deserve a break! I’ll leave you the shoes so you can practice but please be careful. Now lets work on your smile.”   
Katniss let out an exasperated sigh. “What’s wrong with me smile? How could you know you hardly ever saw it.”  
“And that is precisely the problem dear. Now, imagine that you meet me for the first time. Someone else introduces us you shake my hand with a smile and you say…?” she instructed her extanding her hand for her to take. She wasn’t expecting for it to be crushed though.   
“Hello.”   
“Ouch!”   
“Oh sorry...” She didn’ really seem sorry. Or sorry for her for being so weak maybe, but not for her for being way too strong and brutal for a lady.  
“Not ‘Hello’ Katniss… “ she sighed desperately. “Nice to meet you, delighted to meet you, glad to make your acquaintance. And with a smile, not…. Whatever that was. I thought you wanted to cook me for dinner!”   
“Maybe I will...” Katniss muttered. 

Effie was growing desperate to do anything with the girl. She was so reluctant that everything looked or sounded fake, even if it was theoretically well executed. And it was getting worse and worse with Katniss’ increasing annoyance. She needed to find a new strategy.

“Katniss. Tell me about your sister.” She had quickly understood that Primrose was the most important thing for her. And the person she loved most. She has seen her smile a few times when she was talking about her with Peeta.   
And that time too, she did smile. A true, beautiful smile.   
Effie pushed her in front of the mirror again while she was telling her how Prim had found their ginger cat called Buttercup.   
“See? That’s what I want to see.” she said pointing at her reflection in the mirror. “Now I need to go to Peeta. Take your time to relax Katniss.”   
The girl looked at her with a relieved and maybe even a little grateful smile while she retreated to the door. She stopped in the door frame and turned toward Katniss again.  
“You can do it Katniss. You’re pretty, skilled, intelligent and you have retort and wit. Use all that. I believe in you. Truly.”

She was going to leave for good this time, she needed to see Peeta in the last 2 hours left before their arrival. But Katniss asked her one last question. 

“Why do you do that?”

Oh…

“Because I want to help you to win of course. That’s my job” she answered trying to sound cheerful.   
“No, I meant, why do you do this job? Why don’t you just leave and speak about it? You could have stopped it years ago.”   
She didn’t really sound angry at her. Confused, yes, but not hostile. But Effie knew she had to be careful with her answer. The girl was a powder keg. Until now they had got along quite well but a drop could make everything change.   
“Things are not that easy Katniss. I needed… Let’s say I needed a job. And the organization found me, offered me a place and I accepted. Now, it is not that easy to leave. I would have if I had had the opportunity. But...” But I have sorted the wrong number, she didn’t say. Twelve. The losing district. She never had the opportunity to win. And she never had the opportunity to be promoted. And thus, here she was. Still.   
“What is an opportunity to leave? Can’t you just resign? And like, sign a confidentiality paper or something?”  
Again. One wrong word and the girl may take it the wrong way.   
“Let’s say that if you leave, I leave too.”   
Katniss eyes narrowed. She did take it wrong.   
“So you are helping us to save yourself.” she almost snorted.  
“Please don’t twist my words. I really care about you. There is not much to save in my case anyway.” The last part was added lower and as much for herself than for Katniss.   
She couldn’t tell her all the things the Games and the Organization meant to her. They were ten years of her life. More than that even in a way. They were her life now. That she wanted it or not, she couldn’t deny it. She didn’t have much outside of it.  
She could even less try to explain her how the Games saved her. Katniss disliked her enough like that already. 

As long as she lets her help, she decided it would be enough for now. That’s what escort are there for after all. They are not supposed to befriend their tributes. 

If she wins, there will be occasions to explain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As usual, feedback are writers fuel!   
> I hope you liked that chapter!  
> xxx


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Here we are for a new chapter! A whole Haymitch pov and a few guests today… ;)  
> But before that I want to thank all those who leave so many kind reviews. Really, you make me keep going, so thank you very much!

**Chapter 7**

“ _Haymitch! Haymitch, wake up!”_

_ D _ _ on’t pay attention… This is just a dream. A dre… A nightmare. Yeah, that voice’s definitely a fuckin’ nightmare…  _

“ _Haymitch, really! Wake up! We will arrive any minute now!”_

He could see the neon lights through his eyelids. She had opened the curtains and turned the lights on. And she was  y elling with her shrilling, sharp voice. If it wasn’t a nightmare, it was as close as it could get.

He opened an eye to see her standing at the foot of his bed, her arms crossed and her fingers tapping on her forearm, with a n impatient look on her powdered  creepy doll  face. 

“ _Come on Haymitch, hurry up. I have left a suit on your wardrobe and I want you to put it on for the arrival. You have ten minutes!”_ she commanded before storming out of his bedroom _._

He didn’t mind the “storming out furiously” part. It gave him an occasion to admire her perfect derriere in her brand new ridiculous red dress. Ridiculous in every way except from behind.  That was certainly the only part of her he could tolerate.

He reluctantly got out of his bed and put on the suit Effie had left for him. Navy blue with a dark grey silk  embroidered  waistcoat. He had seen worse.  He vaguely brushed his blond hair, tousled during his too short delayed night,  and got out his room.  He found her  sitting alone in the living room car. 

“ _The kids are getting dressed. We should be there in less than ten minutes now. I’ ll let you do the talking this time.”_ she told him flatly, with a small fake smile. She looked… pained and stressed. She was distractedly tapping and gliding her fingers on her iPad. Something was definitely wrong. Usually she was more than happy to present the complex to the tributes. 

“ _Didn’t went well with the kids?”_

The usual smile was back in a blink.

“ _Oh no!… Well, Peeta is truly a sweet boy. He was happy to listen all my advice.”_

And then it was gone again. She looked at her shoes, choosing her words.

“ _Katniss on the other hand… Everything went quite well at first. But… She asked me about…my position. As an escort. I was afraid she would misunderstood me on this topic, and I was right.”_

Haymitch was surprised to see that she looked genuinely sad and sorry that her relation with Katniss had deteriorated.  He knew she cared, she wasn’t heartless, but she usually hid it much better. 

“ _What did she say?” Why do I even care?_ He thought after. It wasn’t in his habits to pep-talk with Effie. 

“ _That I_ _was_ _h_ _elping them hoping that I would save myself.”_ she answered. 

Well, it was kind of true. In a way.  So he didn’t say anything.

“ _Believe me or not Haymitch, but I never saw things that way. Now I can understand her point of view, but… I always thought about the children first. About saving them, innocents. Earning my freedom was absolutely secondary in my mind. I cannot complain about my situation here. I don’t like it of course, but It has never been my objective…_ _I’d rather be here and help than outside ignorant and powerless._ _If I could..._ _”_

_ Wow…  _ Weirdly, he did believe her. Years of working together had helped him to decipher her attitudes. He knew when she lied and when she was  honest . And right now, she had never been so open, truthful. And he didn’t know how to feel about that. A mix of discomfort and compassion was creeping its way in his heart. 

He didn’t like it. He didn’t want to  _ like  _ her! And he was certainly not going to show it to her! 

But he was still going to stop her right now. However her sentence would end, it would not be good. 

“ _Well, that’s a lot of thinking for a puppet! Be careful not to hurt your pretty red head.”_ he deadpanned with a drop of sarcasm. She threw a hurt look at him but it didn’t last. She too had learn to read him with the years. And she saw in his eyes what his mouth didn’t say. _‘You’re not supposed to think. Keep that pretty red head out of trouble’._

He didn’t like her but he wouldn’t wish her any trouble. She wasn’t that bad, for an escort. She was bearable. Except for the voice.

Their silent conversation was interrupted by the compartment door opening. Peeta and his goofy smile first, followed by Katniss being her usual bubbly sel f. The boy was wearing tight black jeans with a baby blue shirt made with a thick but silky fabric. The sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, showing his muscular arms.  Katnis s  was dressed with a warm brown, almost caramel, sleeveless jumpsuit with a thick blood red belt.  But the detail that caught Haymitch’s attention was the pin on her chest. 

She was wearing it. Maysilee’s mockingjay pin.  _ Her  _ mockingjay pin.

But this time it didn’t upset him like the other night.  She seemed to have understood that it meant something important and that it was linked to the place she was  heading.  She was wearing it with pride and a fierce look of defiance. 

When she noticed his staring she didn’t say anything. She just stared back at him. Her gaze conveying many things, and he couldn’t read them all.  He didn't try to hard either. No time for that. The only thing he needed to know was that she was determined an d  not defeated. It was rare enough. 

He decided he liked her and she deserved to know the truth. He would tell her soon.

She was already wearing it, better for her to know what it will mean for her  _ and  _ the organization. Better for her to be prepared.

He was torn away from his thoughts by Effie’s pointed glare.  _ Ah yes! The “arrival speech”… _

“ _So…_ _We will arrive at the Capitol Headquarters any minute now. You need to keep a straight face, whatever you see and whatever you feel inside. There will already be cameras. You need to appear strong and serious,_ _it will count in the ‘public’ opinion and the rankings.”_ He told them as fast as he could to get rid of this chore. He wasn’t good with words. Well not with serious speeches at least. He could still hold his place in sarcasm and jibes, but he had lost his hand with what can be called “normal conversation”. He would have to work on that this time to go and get sponsors. 

“ _Yes, but don’t forget to smile! You don’t want to appear unapproachable or unpleasant. Do not forget, you have to win their hearts so we can win their money!”_ Effie added with a smile. Peeta gave her a small smile of his own but Katniss only glared at her. 

He gave a look, touching her arm slightly. Her eyes moved toward him and her expression changed. He wouldn’t go as far as saying she looked contrite but it was close enough for now. He would talk to her later.  He didn’t need her to antagonize Effie now. 

For now, he could feel the train slowing down and see the lights of the underground station  illuminating  the tunnel.

The station was just like the other. White marble, white tiles, white paint, white neon lights.

A perfect headache.

But this one was bigger than the one they had seen.  T here w ere several railways and platforms. 

He could see that  some  other teams were already there. One, Two, and Three of course. But also Six, Ten and,  _ thank god,  _ Eleven. At least he wasn’t going to be alone for the festivities. 

Their train stopped and he could see another one coming to the end of its railway.

Seven.

Maybe not the best first encounter to have for the kids. But it might be fun for him at least.

They got off the train, Effie first, then the kids and him last. While Effie was  fussing,  making sure the kids were ‘ _ perfect’ _ before throwing them into the lions’ pit,  he watch Seven’s team getting off their train. 

Their escort – he couldn’t bother to remember her name- was already on the platform with the Tributes – a chubby too young girl and a tall pimpled face but well built boy- moving her hands and stomping her feet, screaming intelligibly at someone still inside the train.  She seemed ready to tear her black hair off her head. 

When she finally got off,  she  was still half naked, her dressed unzipped and gaping around her upper half, showing her lacy black bra and white belly skin.  She had her stilettos in one hand and the other in front of her mouth covering a large yawn.  She put her heels on and began walking while trying to catch the zipper of her dress.

Her escort looked absolutely appalled and desperate, trying to catch up with her to help her close her dress. The peacekeepers around didn’t seem to mind the view.

W hen she caught sight of him, Johanna gave him a smirk and a wink, but that the moment his peacekeeper chose to remind him he had to move. 

Effie and the children were already several steps in front of him, and he had to jog a little to catch up.  Not that they seemed to have remarked his abs en ce. 

T hey stopped a the top of the stairs leading to the outside station.  Effie turned around to face them for her last advice before the  _ ‘big moment’.  _

“ _Remember what Haymitch said. Don’t be scared by the cameras,_ _don’t look at them directly,_ _and don’t stare! Eyes bright, chins up, smiles on!”_

The children exchanged a look at the ‘staring’ part. He might have forgot that little piece of information in his own little speech in the train… But it was too late for that now, they were already marching toward the huge bay window leading to the complex.

The view was beautiful from there. You could see the valley and the mountains surrounding it, with the occasional woods ans lakes. But right now, the view was hidden by numerous cameramen on foot or on traveling carts and, most of all, the bleachers.

Flashes were already blinding them through the floor to ceiling windows, and they weren’t even out yet. District Twelve never had so much attention before. At least not since his time.

“ _Wow! What the…“_

“ _Not now!”_ They both cut Peeta mid sentence. “ _And language!”_ Effie added throught her teeth, never departing her perfect smile. 

Effie gestured to the Avox to open the doors and they resumed their march.

The staring was heavy  on their nape . Especially when you can’t see the eyes or the faces staring. 

The cameras were following them, but it was not the most disturbing thing.  Neither was the supposedly ‘epic’ orchestral music blaring in their hears.

No. The weirdest and scariest thing were the men and women sitting in the bleachers. They were all dressed in  simple  but expensive black suits. Their faces hidden by white masks. Not simple masks. Theater masks, like the old Greek  or Roman  theatrical masks with the scary exaggerated expressions. He had to admit they were truly frightening, even after so many years. 

Maybe he should have thought about telling the kids about that before…

Effie didn’t seem as much at ease as usual this time. She was walking faster and her smile was strained.  Maybe he would be the only one to notice. 

T hey finally arrived at the end of their  _ ‘catwalk’.  _ They all stopped waving and smiling the moment they passed the door of the training center. 

“ _What the hell was that?”_ Peeta finally exclaimed like if it had been on his tongue for hours. 

“ _Sponsors, gamemakers… People you need to care about.”_ He answered quickly. He could see the other teams coming their way and he didn’t want the children to meet them yet. They had more pressing concerns and important talks to have before that. “ _Let’s go upstairs.”_ He vaguely waved in the direction of the elevators at the back of the hall.

“ _Yes, very good idea. You’ll see, every team has its own floor. And as you are District Twelve, You got the Penthouse!”_ Effie babbled while ushering them in the elevator. _“Hurry, your prep teams are waiting for you there!”_

“ _Prep team?”_ Katniss asked with … fear? 

“ _Yes!”_ Effie answered way too enthusiastically. “ _Stylists, hair and make up artists… Nothing but the best for you_ _!”_

Katniss and Peeta once again exchanged a frightened look but they kept their thoughts for themselves. And when the elevator stopped and the doors opened, their tongues were lost.

He had to admit the view  _ was _ breathtaking. From there you could see the whole complex. Even the edge of the arena when the weather was compliant. 

The training center in itself was a bastard child between a modern glass and steel building and a European chalet. With huge windows, raw wood on the outside walls, and wooden cozy but modern furniture and fireplaces in the inside.  It was the highest building. 

Outside you could see the other buildings, with the same architecture. The studios, the training areas, the hotels, the restaurants,  the clubs. .. All of them linked by a perfectly groomed green lawn and sand paths.  From there, it really looked like a typical European mountain resort.

In the middle of the complex was a small lake bordered by woods. The only haven  Haymitch had found in the place. 

“ _Wow. Okay. This is huge. It’s… It’s like a… Orlando Park!”_ Peeta stammered, still incapable of taking his eyes off the landscape. 

“ _Hm yeah… Not sure about the analogy but yeah. It’s huge.”_ Haymitch answered frowning with amusement. “ _come on, people are waiting for you.”_

H e led them to the living room where Effie was already chatting with the team members.  When they entered the room, she took their shoulders to bring them to the teams. 

“ _Please,_ _Peeta,_ _Katniss, meet your stylists, Portia_ _and Cinna_ _!”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there we are! So what do think of this little Capitol complex?  
> Tell me everything!   
> xoxo


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Peeta was lying on his bed. He didn’t bother taking his shoes off before falling on the comforter.

He was exhausted. The whole thing was already tiring, the train ride had been tensed, but _this_ had been the last straw.

He wasn’t used to so much attention.

His _prep team,_ albeit very sympathetic, had been insufferable. They never stopped talking, running around, touching him – his face, his hair, his body- taking measurements and other things he couldn’t even try to understand. They even talked about waxing him and doing his nails!

If he had been irritated by all the fuss, he couldn’t imagine the state Katniss was in right now. The idea made him chuckle.

He wanted to take advantage of the little time he had before dinner to lie down and take a nap, but a soft knock on his door disturbed his plans.

“ _Come in!”_

Effie came in quietly and came toward the bed to sit beside him.

“ _I hope I am not disturbing you.”_

“ _Oh no, no! I was just.. hum doing … nothing.”_ Well, that was the truth. He couldn’t refuse her if he wasn’t doing anything.

“ _Good.”_ She laughed softly. She seemed less bubbly and excited than usual. She almost seemed sad. Her smile was small and didn’t reach her eyes. “ _Peeta, I think I owe you the truth. Katniss asked me about it and I think you deserve to know it too.”_

“ _Effie what’s going on?”_ He asked her frowning. He was worried now. He couldn’t say he _liked_ the woman. But she had been nice and quite honest with them since the beginning. So he liked her well enough. What was it that could worry her so much? What had happened with Katniss? He had noted that her attitude had changed a little, but being blunt wasn’t unusual for her.

“ _Well, first of all, I want you to know that I really care about you. Both of you. You deserve to win and I will do everything I can to help you. Believe me_ _on_ _that.”_ She was speaking very softly, almost whispering.

“ _I do Effie, I know that._ _Don’t worry about that._ _”_

“ _Thank you dear. But the thing is, and I don’t want you to take it the wrong way...”_

“ _Like Katniss did?”_ he joked, but she gave him a look that said what her mouth didn’t, he was right.

He gave her an apologetic smile.

“ _The thing is we, Escorts, are not here for all our lives. We have… well.. two ways out of the Organization. The one that matters here is making our Tributes win. If one of our Tribute wins his Games, we are… freed. With… everything we need to leave and begin a new life.”_

“ _Hum… uh okay.”_ Peeta stammered. He didn’t know what to say. He could understand why Katniss took this information the wrong way. She wasn’t very good at reading people. But he could see the honesty and the genuine affection in Effie’s eyes. “ _I understand Effie, truly.”_

Relief spread on her face as a smile stretched her lips. “ _Thank you Peeta. Believe me, I really want you to win._ _Because y_ _ou deserve it,_ _not just for selfish reasons_ _.”_

“ _Thank you Effie.”_ He smiled. “ _Can I ask you something?”_

“ _Yes of course dear.”_

“ _What’s the other way out?”_

Her smile strained a little and her eyes saddened. She didn’t really need to say it, it was enough for him to understand. He took her hand and squeezed it gently.

“ _It won’t happen Effie, you’re the best escort.”_ he told her with a wink. It worked, her smile came back full force, even if still a little sad.

“ _How could you know that?”_ She said playfully, squeezing his hand too. “ _Thank you Peeta. I’ll let you to your nap now”._ She said giving him a wink and getting up to leave the room. “ _I’ll see you at dinner.”_

When she arrived at the door, Peeta mouth spoke before he could think better of it.

“ _Effie, how did you become an escort?”_

Once again her smile faltered for an instant, but it was back when she turned to face him.

“ _That’s a story for an other time Peeta.”_

With that, she left and closed the door behind her.

When dinner time came close, he decided to go to the living room. Maybe someone else would be there to talk, or at least he could watch TV.

Katniss was already there in the sofa, hugging her knees and eyes riveted on the TV screen. Coming closer he saw what was on the screen. A recap of every team’s arrival in the Capitol. He recognized vaguely Seven’s team that had arrived with them at the station. The _Careers_ mentors from District 2 were scary. One had her teeth shaped like fangs and the other was a bull. _Is that what Victors look like?_ He couldn’t help but think. He stopped watching the screen and turned toward Katniss.

“ _So, how are you?”_ he asked her with a knowing smile.

“ _Don’t talk about that.”_ She simply answered, her eyes ready to pop off their sockets and both her hands lifted like a shield in front of her face.

He laughed “ _That’s what I thought.”_ She smiled at that.

“ _Cinna doesn’t look bad but we couldn’t talk much with all those… crazy rainbow colored bees running around me!”_ she winced and shuddered at the thought. It made him laugh fondly. “ _He was very interested in my pin. What is it with this thing? First Haymitch and now him...”_ she added after a minute.

“ _I don’t know…”_ He answered. He had thought about it too. Haymitch reaction had been really odd and violent. “ _Do you think it has something to see with this place?”_

“ _Maybe._ _Surely_ _… What else could it be? I don’t see what else could link Haymitch and Cinna...”_

“ _Oh! Perfect you’re already here! Come, come! Dinner is ready!”_

Effie’s voice interrupted their thoughts. She was coming from the bedrooms corridor and followed by a very grumpy, disheveled and yawning Haymitch. _Had he been sleeping all afternoon?_ Then Haymitch bumped into a table and almost tripped on his own foot. _Drinking_ _then_ _._

Once they were all sat at the table, he noticed two people in the corners of the dining room. They had a mask but nothing like the ones they had seen earlier. They were simple, realistic, covering all their face and black like their clothes. The only weird thing was that there was no hole for the mouth. There wasn’t even a mouth shape sculpted.

They filled their plates and began eating. They ate for a while in silence, when himself and Effie got tired of being the only ones doing the mandatory small talk. But the peaceful moment couldn’t last.

“ _So, we need to talk about your day tomorrow. It’s going to be a big, big day!”_ Effie begun. Haymitch snorted in his glass and Katniss reluctantly lifted her eyes toward them.

Effie gestured to the _servants-?-_ to clean the table before dessert and resumed her explanation.

“ _You’ll have to wake up very early, your prep teams will be here to get you ready for the Parade”_

“ _The Parade?”_ Katniss exclaimed with an irritated and disgusted face.

“ _Yes, the Tributes Parade. You will be dressed up according to your District industry, -you read about that in your files did you? “_ They both nodded. “ _and you will go down the Corso, the great avenue, in a Chariot. It will be your big moment, your chance to shine.”_

Again, Katniss snorted while serving helping herself with a big slice of chocolate cake.

“ _And you’ll finally have the great honor of meeting the Great Manitou!”_ Haymitch said sarcastically, his words slurring out of his mouth.

Effie clucked her tongue giving him an annoyed look.

“ _The Parade will be followed by the welcoming speech of President Snow, but you won’t really meet him directly.”_

“ _Jokes apart, Effie’s right. You need to behave tomorrow. Everybody will be there and it will be the first event broadcast live. Like she said, you need to win their hearts. Be charming, seduce them._ _It will be your only appearance for the watchers until the interviews, and then the Games.”_

It was a surprisingly long speech for a drunk Haymitch. And serious too. His eyes had never left Katniss all along, but she had not even glanced at him. She stubbornly refuse to look at either of them. Something was definitively amiss between her and Effie, and Haymitch seemed to be aware of it too.

Peeta cleared his throat.

“ _How are the watchers important? They don’t sponsor do they?”_

“ _They aren’t official sponsor, most of them are anonymous. But they can give money too, and choose if they want it to go to a Tribute in particular or to the Organization. In this case, it will be used for events in the arena.”_ Effie answered. But her answer raised more question than it answered any in Peeta’s mind.

“ _How can they give money anonymously?”_

“ _Crypto currencies.”_ This time it was Haymitch who answered. “ _Bitcoin is the most used, it’s the reference. Like the USD for us.”_

The conversation seemed to attract Katniss attention back. She finally turned to Effie.

“ _What do you mean ‘events in the arena’? I thought it was just us against the others. Not us against the others and booby traps”_ Her eyes were narrowed at Effie. Just as she was opening her mouth to answer, Haymitch decided to intervene.

“ _Didn’t you read your file sweetheart? They want a show! If things get.. boring, they give them a little boost.”_ He rebuked her, snapping his fingers, before gulping the content of glass bottoms up. “ _Now go to sleep, it will be your last occasion for a good_ _one_ _.”_ Katniss was about to ask what he meant by that, but he put his hand on her arm to stop her. He knew. He had read about it. The training. Nights with sore muscles and dreams of fights and death won’t be as relaxing.

They stood up and walked to their bedrooms. Before entering his, Peeta turned toward Katniss.

“ _Don’t be too harsh with Effie. She is not the enemy here.”_

“ _She works with them, she is just as responsible for everything.”_ she answered with anger and loathing.

“ _I don’t think things are so simple.”_ He just said before entering his room, leaving her in the corridor.

He had seen the way Effie had gone white when he had asked her about how she got the job. He was certain things were not as simple as that.

xxx

The next morning Katniss was already up and ready when Effie came to take her to her prep team.

In fact, she had been up for a while. Watching the _City_ from her window, sitting on her bed, hugging herself.

She was there, preparing herself for death. Kill or be killed, in either way she would see it. Live it. And they were down there, partying in clubs, drinking in bars. She wasn’t sure because it was dark, but she thought she had seen Haymitch staggering around on his way back to the training center around four in the morning.

She was a little disappointed to see that Cinna wasn’t here. He was the only n person who seemed to have common sense here.

Instead she was facing two tall and thin women and a small chubby man. The first woman, the one with pink hair and tattoo on her face took her to some kind of table - it looked more like a gurney – while the other one, with her head half shaved and heavy dark makeup, went to fetch several boxes in a suitcase.

“ _Take your clothes off!”_ The man asked her like if it was the most natural thing in the world.

“ _What? No!”_

“ _Take your clothe off, we’re not going to wax your jeans...”_ He rolled his eyes. The punk-ish woman came to help her getting rid of her things and forced her to lie down on the table.

Once she was on it naked, she couldn’t do anything but grit her teeth and gather all her good will to prevent herself from hitting them.

They waxed, scrubbed, washed, scrubbed again, rinsed, moistened, oiled her for more than two hours. Then they washed and cut her hair and did her nails.

She felt even more naked now than she did before. It was like if her skin was a new one. She wasn’t herself anymore.

She barely recognized herself in the mirror.

Once they were done, they left her in her room and she could finally put some clothe on. Sport shorts and a tank top.

She had just sprawled on her bed when a strong knock echoed in the room and Cinna entered without waiting for an answer. Like yesterday he was dressed with black jeans, a black t-shirt, a black leather jacket and -the only really peculiar thing – a thin wing of golden eyeliner.

He didn’t smile at her. Instead his face was closed, thoughtful.

“ _Hello Katniss.”_ She nodded with a small smile. “ _I’m sorry that you’re here. It was very brave of you to volunteer for your sister.”_

“ _Thank you. I guess...So you’re here to make me look pretty?”_ she said ironically.

“ _You don’t need me for that.”_ He was looking right in her eyes with an expression she couldn’t interpret. Thoughtful, admiring, calculating. “ _I am here to help you make an impression. Or at least more than you already did.”_ She thought she saw him smirk for a nano second.

“ _What do you mean?”_ What could he mean ‘ _more than you already did’_? She didn’t do anything special until now.

“ _Volunteering is a rare thing. It didn’t go unnoticed. You are already on every lips here.”_ He was pacing the room now. He stopped in front of her bedside table and brushed his fingers on her golden pin. “ _They like a temper, people with character. They like memorable personalities. And trust me, you already are memorable.”_ He said with a genuine smile, but altered by the same thoughtful look in his eyes.

She liked Cinna, he was honest. But there was something in him that made her a little wary. Like if he expected something from her. He was watching her like if she was more than a girl who had thrown herself in the lions’ pit. And he was also fascinated by her pin, it wasn’t hard too see even he didn’t make a fuss like Haymitch had.

They all ate together with the stylists, Effie and Haymitch, before finishing their preparation.

When they came back into the living room, her and Peeta saw each other in their matching outfits. Black synthetic leather suits covering them from head to toe. Katniss was the only one who had to suffer half an hour of braiding her hair and styling them into a crown around her head.

They followed Effie and Cinna to the room where the chariots were waiting. Haymitch was nowhere to be seen. Certainly getting drunk somewhere. Effie left them after a few words of encouragement and a reminder of manners and posture.

“ _I added a little accessory to your suits.”_ Cinna said taking a little stick and a little remote from his pocket. “ _Don’t worry, it’s fake. You won’t feel a thing.”_ He added as he pressed a button on the remote and a little flame appeared at the end of the stick.

Katniss couldn’t help herself from touching the flame. She didn’t feel anything.

“ _It’s..”_

“ _A hologram yes. It won’t burn you and I will control it from here. Don’t worry.”_ They both nodded, still watching the flame in admiration. “ _They want a show, we’ll give them one. Don’t forget to smile, make them like you, I can’t do all the work.”_ he winked at them while getting away as the first chariot was called.

As they began moving, they both threw a last glance in his direction. He nodded at them with a smile and mouthed something at them. She read “ _Hold hands”_ and she felt Peeta’s hand touching hers so she took it and entwined their fingers. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So! As usual, tell me your thoughts about this chapter!   
> I apologize, I know it’s not the best but my head is so busy right now, I couldn’t find a way to make it better. I promise the next one will be much better!   
> Also, if you want to see what inspired me for the Capitol, go search pictures of Tignes in the Alps in summer. It’s a beautiful french ski station where I have been working! 
> 
> Please live a review! Reviews are love!  
> xxx


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

They were astonishing!

Effie, Haymitch and the stylists were sitting in the staff section on the bleachers. A the top of them, because they were District Twelve. Cinna was wearing a little smug smile, Haymitch was sprawled in his chair clutching his flask and Effie was holding her breath.

When they appeared, she couldn’t say if her ears were ringing because of the lack of oxygen, screams of the crowd, or a heavy stupefied silence. It was most likely the latter.

She saw Haymitch straighten up on the edge of his sit and that’s the moment her eyes registered what was so fascinating.

The other chariots had been quite standard, not to say dull, albeit very colorful. But the last one. Their Tributes. They had set the stage on fire. Literally.

They were standing straight, facing the crowd with a perfect smile on their faces -she couldn’t help feeling a pinch of pride seeing her work fruitful – with huge flames following them like the tail of a shooting star. She looked at Cinna and saw his smug and proud smirk, and his eyes shining like those of a child at Christmas.

When they arrived in the middle of the avenue, all the heads were following them. She couldn’t see their faces but she could easily imagine their expressions behind their masks. Stupefied and excited for the sponsors, and stupefied and horrified for the gamemakers.

The children had already been noticed from the beginning. Especially Katniss. She knew they were wary of her. Of them. They were keeping a very close eye on her sister from what she had overheard. And now they were showing off a little more.

And she was _damn_ proud of them! 

Just when she thought thing couldn’t get better (or worse)  they did something really unexpected. 

The y lifted their hands entwined by the fingers.  They were showing their alliance. They were telling the world that they wouldn’t be separated so easily and that they were proud of it. 

_That_ was… she couldn’t say. 

She turned to look at Haymitch who seem just as hesitant and astonished as her. Her eyes asked the question for her.  _Was that your doing?_ He shook his head no and they both turned their gaze to Cinna who was still hiding his s mirk behind  th e hand on his  mouth. 

She decided it was a good thing. A great thing even. Pulling a stunt like that was publicity. It was now her,  _their_ , turn to make it good publicity. 

They were going to have a lot of work on their hands this year, between controlling Katniss temper and using it wisely,  and now that.

The speech was the same every year. “ _Welcome, thank you for your sacrifice” - like if they had a choice...-_ and “ _May the odds be ever in your favor”._ After that, they went to meet their Tributes backstage to congratulate them and take them back to the penthouse. 

“ _You were astonishing children! Perfect! Now go relax and freshen up a little, you deserve it. We’ll see you at dinner.”_ She dismissed them with a peck on the cheeks before going straight to the bar once their were out of sight. 

S he made herself a tall glass of gin tonic and one of whiskey for Haymitch.  He came to the bar and sat on a bar stool in front of her. 

“ _A decade. We’ve worked together for a decade. And that’s the first time I see you acting like that.”_ he said watching her his glass in his hand. 

“ _Well, first, you’re welcome”_ she retorted glancing at the glass he had taken without a word, “ _and, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”_ But she knew her smile was strained, her laugh tense and her eyes had the nasty habit of betraying her. Especially with Haymitch. It must have because of the amount of time they had spent working together, but he seemed to read her like an open book sometimes. It was truly infuriating. 

“ _Not to me sweetheart. You’re distressed, troubled. Is it the girl? Or do you know something I don’t?”_ She preferred him drunk and mean than sarcastically friendly. She hated not being able to tell if it was genuine or not. They weren’t friends. They were merely colleagues. 

With a sigh she surrendered. It was no use hiding him. He would discover things s o oner or later. Better for him to learn it from her.  At least they had that. Trust.  It had been one of their first big talk – argument -, they had to be honest with each other t o work together.

“ _All right. They… they are not that happy with the whole volunteering story._ _They don’t like having someone out there knowing about us and it attracts so many new watchers that they’_ _re having a hard time_ _control_ _ling_ _everyone._ _There is a hundred persons waiting in the_ _line_ _for_ _the_ _D_ _iscord server right now,_ _and as much in the Waiting Room_ _. And it’s like that every day._ _They had to reinforce the server,_ _the website_ _and the security._ _It’s too much attention._ _They are afraid to lose control.”_ Everything escaped her so fast it was almost blurted in a very unladylike manner. Her mother would have been appalled. She hid her reddening face in her glass. 

Haymitch was looking at her with rapt attention now, a twinkle in his grey eyes and his glass forgotten on the counter. After a minute lost in his thoughts, he finally spoke. 

“ _I need to go somewhere. We’ll talk about this later.”_ With that he almost ran to the elevator and she was left alone in the living room. 

W hat had she say that had him sober up that fast and think that hard? She might be acting weird this year but he wasn’t his usual drunk and hateful self either.  She had seen him more than one hour in three days, that was a first. And he was actually mentoring,  _that_ was a miracle. 

Something had changed. But she couldn’t  sa y what yet.

S he finished her drink and went to her room. She had work to do, sponsor to find, a strategy to build.  It occupied her mind until dinner time. When she got to the dining room the children were already there with Haymitch. Talking about the training. 

T here was something in his eyes. Something almost passionate when he spoke.  For the first time she saw the Victor. The young man who had used his muscles as well as his brains to save his life.  She sat at her place around the table  after putting back  a bright smile on her face . 

“ _Good evening! Please excuse me, I have been taken by my work I didn’t see the hours fly.”_

“ _It’s all right Effie”_ Peeta said with a soft smile. “ _We were talking about training. Maybe you could help us with some point.”_ She smiled back at him but let Haymitch finish his speech about survival stations. 

“ _Concentrate on that. You both have fighting skills, that’s enough. They won’t change someone who never held a sword into a warrior in five days. So don’t worry about that, let them waste their time._ _Use yours wisely, you’ll need to know how to find water, edible plants, make traps.”_

She definitively never saw him speak that much to their Tributes. _Speak that much,_ period. He had barely touched his plate and his glass.

“ _And you don’t want the Careers to know what you can do before entering the Arena. They would use it in their strategy. Stay neutral, keep a low profile for now. You will have enough occasion to show off in front of the judges.”_

For once Katniss was listening without a word. She was drinking his words. She frowned a few times but nodded when he asked her if she had understood his point.

It went on like that for all dinner. Talks about shelters, traps, weapons… Debates over _which is the best between knives and swords?_ Melee weapons over ranged weapons… That was really not her field of expertise. The only thing she could add was that they needed to behave because some gamemakers and sponsors would be there to watch them.

She sent the children to bed and was about to do the same when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

“ _Come with me, we need to talk.”_ he whispered in her ear. His hand lowered to her arm and stayed there while he walked to the elevator, dragging her with him. She wasn’t used to that much contact with him but it wasn’t as uncomfortable as she thought it would be. His grip was firm but gentle, and his hand was warm through the thin wool of her dress. She just had time to grab her coat before being pushed through the doors.

“ _Where are you taking me Haymitch. I warn you we really don’t have the leisure to get drunk this year.”_

He gave her an annoyed look.

“ _I don’t need you to get drunk. You’ll see.”_ _Trust me a little,_ he didn’t say but she heard.

She wordlessly followed him outside the Center. They walked for a while around the lake in the direction of the small patch of woods on the side. He gestured her to sit on a fallen trunk and went get something behing a tree behind her.

He came back with a bottle of Bourbon.

The view was beautiful from there. All the lights of the City reflected in the lake, bathing them in a soft and warm orange glow. The sky was decorated with an infinity of stars. She could have called that a romantic setting if she hadn’t bee there with Haymitch.

“ _Why did we have to come here to talk? It’s freezing.”_

“ _Because I don’t trust the Penthouse. It’s safe here I checked.”_ He took a long gulp of liquor. “ _You’re right. I went to the club earlier to ‘overhear’ a little._ _They’re on edge.”_

“ _I am afraid of what it means for the children.”_ She said extending her arm in a silent request for the bottle. He handed it to her.

“ _They can’t kill her. If they do, they will have to kill her family too.”_ she gasped but he kept going. “ _The sister talked. She went to the police a few times. They managed to cover thing up, but they’re afrai_ _d_ _.”_

“ _But what if she wins?”_ She would be just as dangerous for them.

“ _If she wins, they will be two with the same story. It will be even worse for them. It’s a dead end.”_ He took the bottle back and drank. “ _If she wins, trust her for not following the scripted story. And with the support of her sister and the concordance of their testimony...”_

It was a dead end. Either they let her live and they risk their fall, or she dies and it will confirm the tale of her sister. And if they kill her too, it will be suspect.

“ _We need something to distract them.”_ He turned to face her, cocking an eyebrow. “ _Something bigger than that. Than Katniss volunteering_ _I mean_ _. Something that would be more dangerous for them but could also be their way out.”_

“ _Aaand do you have an idea for that sweetheart? That’s a very appealing idea, I give you that, but it needs a spark to make a fire.”_

It took her a moment but what was at the moment an innocent scene came back to her mind. And it might be the spark they needed.

“ _Well…_ _Actually I might have one.”_ she said thoughtfully, taking back the bottle and drinking a few times. Dutch courage. “ _But…_ _It’s huge._ _It ’s_ _almost impossible that we might succeed and.. “_

“ _Sho_ _o_ _t! Little chance is better than no chance at all.”_

“ _Well, in the train. I came to see Peeta, to give him a lesson about manners and all that… “_ He nodded “ _and, when I came in, he was drawing. He was drawing Katniss face. And it was truly beautiful.”_ This time he frowned.

“ _You don’t think he...”_

“ _Well… I didn’t say anything at first but… The way he looks at her.._ _and their hands at the Parade..._ _Haymitch it could be...”_

“ _Fuck… If it’s true… Poor boy...”_ his gaze stayed fixed on the lake for a while. “ _But what do you wanna do with that?”_

“ _You’ll say I’m crazy but… What if we could convince them to take the two of them out? They wouldn’t risk each other’s families would they?”_

His eyebrows had almost melted into one while he was thinking it through.

“ _Think about it Haymitch, they would both live, Katniss and Prim wouldn’t speak if it meant risking Peeta’s family and_ _same for hi_ _m_ _._ _And for the Organization it would be hell of a publicity stunt._ _They would be under close surveillance_ _of course,_ _but t_ _he Organization_ _c_ _a_ _n’t harm nine people so easily.”_

He remained silent for a few seconds, his eyes into hers. She was getting ill-at-ease when he spoke.

“Soooo… _There IS a brain in there!”_ he said poking her head with a finger.

“Oh hush!” she exclaimed, what had him burst out laughing. “ _Rude...”_ she muttered.

“ _This isn’t a bad plan Effie but… It’s a fucking huge gamble.”_ she clucked her tongue at the swear word. “ _It will take a few acting lessons for them and a lot of work for us.”_ He stopped and added lower “ _And don’t be so sure they would_ _n’t_ _have remorse hurting whole families. It had happened before.”_ He finished the bottle in a last big gulp.

“ _What do you mean?”_

He chuckled bitterly. “ _Nothing.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> An extra chapter with a little Hayffie moment!   
> Hope you enjoyed it! Next time we will meet a few new friends, be prepared!  
> xxx


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

The first day of training had been hard.

Katniss quickly understood why Haymitch had been so insistent on some points.

The Careers were frightening. One of them, a tall muscular blond boy, in particular. She had not even put her second foot in the room that he had locked his eyes -piercing clear blue, cruel eyes - in hers and beheaded the dummy in front of him, a smile on his lips.

_What a welcome!…_

She kept her eyes in his during his little display of strength, and walked away with a mask of indifference on her face. On her face only. Inside she wasn’t so confident. His sword was the size of her leg and she couldn’t even imagine the weigh. She was incapable of using such a weapon.

Later she spotted one of the Career girls in the archery station. She was making a show of her skills, throwing murderous glances and vicious smiles to the younger Tributes around her. Even Peeta was watching her. She was good and very smug about it. But not as good as Katniss.

Almost all the not-career Tributes were younger than her and Peeta, except for the boy from Eleven and maybe one or two others, she wasn’t sure. They were children, frightened and hugging themselves in the corners of the room while watching their future executioners showing off all their killing tricks.

They followed Haymitch advice and stuck to the survival stations, edible plants for Peeta and snares for herself. She already knew a few things about survival in the wild, she had gone camping in the forest plenty of times with her friend Gale, but one thing they had never really mastered was snares, or traps when they’re on a human scale.

She was alone with an other girl at that station, a skinny redhead with a small pointy nose. She was keeping her head lowered, focused on her task, only glancing up at Katniss from time to time with fear – and admiration?- in her intelligent clear amber eyes. Katniss tried to give her a smile but she seemed even more scared after that.

Maybe it was the  _Volunteer_ effect. They took her for a Career.

After hours of tying knots, sorting plants and lighting fires, she needed something to let off steam. She needed to hit something. If not someone. 

She chose the stick fight. She had never done that before.

She wasn’t too bad at it. At least she could defend herself. But when she saw that a few Tributes, including Careers, were watching her she remembered what Haymitch had said, “ _Do not show your strength or your weaknesses, don’t show off”,_ so she stopped and walked toward Peeta. 

Their training time was soon over anyway. 

They got back to the Penthouse.

They had not even put a foot out of the elevator that a curious cry stopped them.

“ _Was that …”_ Peeta began.

“ _Effie yes...”_ She ended.

“ _Should we…?”_

“ _I don’t know…”_ She wasn’t really worried but it _was_ strange.

“ _Oh Haymitch!”_

This time they were sure it was Effie. And she was pissed off.

*** bang** *

“O _uch!” / “Fuck!”_

They ran to the living room. They found Haymitch on the floor, lying on his back, his shirt half open, with Effie on top of him, dishevelled, in leggings, sport brassiere and very high heels. Their limbs were entangled and they were both suspiciously sweaty.

“ _What the fuck!?”_ Katniss exclaimed.

Their heads shot in her direction.

“ _Language!” / “It’s not what it looks like!”_

Effie rolled her eyes at Haymitch, a rare vulgar gesture coming from her. She must have been really pissed…

“ _I was trying to teach your dearest mentor how to dance a waltz.”_ she began to explain, her usual smile back on her face “ _I have never met anyone who couldn’t dance a waltz. Until today!”_ she was back on her two feet, standing straight, running a hand on her hip and waving the other in the air above Haymitch -who was trying to stand up with great difficulties- to convey her annoyance at him.

“ _I don’t want to learn waltz.”_

“ _And I don’t want to work with you, yet here I am!”_

“ _It would not have happened if you hadn’t slapped me!”_

“ _I wouldn’t have slapped you if you hadn’t groped me!”_

“ _I wouldn’t grope you, I have a little pride left, thank you very much! I was trying to keep you standing after stomping on your feet.”_

“ _You always have a good excuse! I should forbid you to frequent Chaff you’re getting worse than him!”_

“ _Yeah? You think you can forbid me things sweetheart?”_

“ _Sweetheart me again and I swear I’ll emasculate you!”_

“ _Try...”_

They were so close Katniss couldn’t say if they were about to slap or kiss each other. She didn’t know where to look, she should certainly have looked away but they were strangely fascinating.

Hopefully, Peeta -who had been until then in deep contemplation of his shoes - cleared his throat to remind them of their presence.

They stayed frozen, their eyes locked, for a second. But Effie broke the spell and turned toward them, fixing the wayward strands of hair back in her ponytail.

“ _Sorry my dears, how was training? Oh go refresh yourself a little, we all need it I think. We’ll talk_ _at dinner_ _.”_ The smile and the perfect Escort attitude were back, so all worry left Katniss’s mind on her account. Haymitch on the other hand was sprawled on the sofa, legs crossed, his head in his hands, trying to control his breathing.

“ _Are you all right Haymitch?”_ Peeta enquired. “ _Do you need_ _something? W_ _ater?”_

“ _Hmpf, water...”_ he scoffed.

“ _Go, I’ll take care of him.”_ Katniss told Peeta. He nodded and headed to his room. Katniss went to the bar cart and poured whiskey in a glass. The noise seemed to get Haymitch out of his sulking. He sat back correctly and fixed his shirt.

“ _Who said it was for you?”_ Katniss joked, but handed him the glass anyway. He snatched it with a sneer.

“ _So you are capable of humour then!”_

“ _Fuck you!”_

“ _You stink.”_

“ _Do you s_ _mell_ _yourself_ _sometimes?_ _”_ she replied but she softened seeing the smirk on his face. He was riling her up on purpose. “ _What was that?”_

“ _A dance lesson. Because for the first time, I’ll have to attend seriously to the great parties.”_

“ _For the first time?”_

“ _I never… I’ve never really been into socialites._ _It had always been Effie’s thing._ _”_ he got lost in the liquid swirling in his glass. “ _You really should go have a shower sweetheart.”_

She understood what he didn’t say. He had never bothered with the sponsoring stuff. She had heard him talk about that before. But she still didn’t understand why he had such a faith in her that he would change that.

“ _Half of them… they don’t stand a chance. They’re children, regular children…”_ he didn’t answer. There wasn’t anything to answer to be honest. “ _They’re afraid of me._ _I know I am not the most friendly looking person but…_ _They look at me the same way they look at the Careers.”_

“ _To them you are. They don’t know why you volunteered. The only thing they know is that you did.”_

“ _So I already am_ _a_ _monster.”_

“ _Not yet.”_

They didn’t say anything for a while, but the silence was not uncomfortable or awkward. They were just following their own path of thoughts together.

“ _What will happen to her if … if I die?”_ She was talking about Prim of course. He understood it.

“ _I don’t know sweetheart. Honestly.”_ He stood up patting her shoulder for comfort, finished his glass and disappeared in the corridor. 

S he remained in the armchair for a while, staring into nothing, thinking about Prim, alone. Hoping their mother was able to take care of her and not the other way around.  She knew losing the man she loved had been a blow. Even if she was mad at her for letting go and abandoning her and Prim, she kind of understood. But loosing her  too , it would destroy her.  And Prim would be alone. 

S he couldn’t let that happen. 

S he stood up and headed to her room. 

A killer they want, a killer they will get.  She already had a reputation, better use it. 

D inner was a usual business -scary how in three days they already had a routine and a knowledge of everyone’s habits. Effie was babbling and ranting about Haymitch, occasionally chiding Katniss about her elbows on the table. Haymitch was sulking, drinking and sometimes  answering snide remarks to Effie.  Peeta was trying to be nice to everybody and sometimes went fishing for advice from Haymitch or Effie. 

And herself was  listening and watching them with something akin to fascination, only speaking when directly talked to. She would never admit it, but she quite liked this, i t was irritating but endearing  in a  way.  She felt like in a strange family reunion, with the  handsome quarterback cousin, the joyful aunt and the drunkard uncle. 

She couldn’t say that she regretted her argument with Effie, she still thought her motivation were selfish, but she didn’t like to see Effie  act  war ily  around her.  She wasn’t looking at her in the eyes anymore, and always talked to her like if she was going to bite her if she chose one word wrong. She felt like with the other Tributes, dangerous and misunderstood.  She could take it from strangers,  especially strangers who were going to try kill her, but not from someone of her own team. They were some kind of team, right? 

A fter dinner, Haymitch settled on the couch, a glass in his hand, with Peeta to talk about the Games. Effie went to her room to get ready for a party. She followed her. 

When she arrived at her door, she knocked. 

“ _Come in.”_ Came the soft voice, with a questioning tone. She wasn’t expecting anyone and certainly not Katniss. 

“ _Hey.”_ She said, a little ill-at-ease. She had never done that before. Never needed to. “ _Do you have a minute?”_

“ _For you, always dear.”_ She answered softly from her dressing table, inviting her to sit on the bed. She seemed surprised but happy to see her here, if her kind smile and lifted eyebrows were to be trusted. 

K atniss cleared her throat. “ _Effie I..hm.. I’m sorry about the other day. I don’t understand why or how you can do that, and you are irritating me more often than not but… I see, I know that you’re really trying to help us, and… we need you. So… thank you for that.”_ She was watching her feet but she could see Effie from the corner of her eye. She had a hand on her chest and a small smile on her lips. She wasn’t sure but she thought she had seen her eyes shine and her bottom lip wobble a little. 

“ _Thank you Katniss, It means a lot to me.”_ she said extending a hand to take hers and squeeze it. “ _You can trust me, you know that.”_

“ _Yeah.”_ she took her hand away, uncomfortable with any kind of display of affection. “ _But please stop looking at me like a was gonna hurt you.”_

“ _I know you would never hurt me dear. But in exchange, can you mind your table manners?”_ she added the last part as a joke, a knowing grin on her face. She had felt the awkwardness on Katniss part, and wanted to dissipate it. Katniss smiled back.

“ _Deal.”_ She stood up to leave.

“ _Oh Katniss, can I ask you a favor?”_

“ _Oh, hum.. Yes?”_

“ _Can you tell Haymitch to go change his shirt before going out for me? He stained it with gravy, on the left side. I can’t be seen with a dirty Victor it would not be good publicity…”_

“ _Oh, okay, no problem.”_ She close the door and left.

She walked in the leaving room, the boys hadn’t moved. Haymitch had his back to her.

“ _Effie asked me to tell you to change your shirt.”_

“ _Well, you can tell Effie_ _that this shirt is perfectly fine and that she can_ _go fu...”_

“ _You stained it. With gravy.”_ she said coming in front of him and pointing the spot with an insolent finger and a smirk on her face.

He bowed his head to see the stain and threw it against the headrest of the couch with a heavy sigh. Peeta was hiding his smile in his hand. 

Haymitch stood up muttering insanities about a certain “ _pain in his ass”_ and went to his room. 

Katniss and Peeta  stayed and watched TV for a while. The show was about the old Games, a kind of potpourri of all the ‘great’ moments, best kills, best actions, etc. It was both scary and instructive.

The presenters were fun to watch. Or, if not  _fun,_ riveting. 

They didn’t wear a mask but they had a lot of makeup instead, and very colourful wigs. The first one was chubby, with a curly mauve wig and even a  _mouche_ on his powdered cheek. The other one was thin and had a very sympathetic face. He was wearing a blue wig styled with a  _catogan_ like during the 18 th century. It gave him a  half  Karl Lagerfeld  half Mozart style. He had  a lot of charisma. Even Katniss found herself smiling at his jokes and enthusiasm. 

“ _Claudius and Ceasar… can’t be their real name.”_ She said, rhetorically, but Peeta answered . 

“ _No. They’re pseudonyms. They are from the Greek or Roman Era. Like the masks.”_ He chuckled a little. 

“ _Let me guess, it’s in the file uh?… “_ He smiled and nodded “ _I should really read it...”_

They watched the show in silence for a while.

“ _Do you think that Effie is her real name? Or is it a fake too?”_ Peeta asked out of the blue. She had never thought about that but it was possible. Who would use their real name here? It was dangerous.

“ _I don’t know. I don’t think so._ _We_ _should ask her.”_ she shrugged like it was no big deal.

As usual, Effie’s timing was perfect.

“ _We are really sorry to leave you all by yourselves. Be reasonable and don’t stay up to late, you need rest!”_ Effie told them in a very motherly manner that had Haymitch roll his eyes to the back of his skull.

“ _And no sugar before bed, and don’t put your heads in the microwave.”_ Haymitch mocked her. _“Can we go now?”_

Effie whacked his arm, glaring at him with her lips so pursed they had almost disappeared.

“ _Don’t worry Effie, we’re exhausted anyway._ _We’re not gonna be up for much longer._ _”_ Peeta reassured her.

“ _All right, goodnight children.”_ Her smile was back on her face, and she pecked them both on the cheek before going to the elevator, Haymitch on her heels, his hands on his pockets, still shaking his head left and right.

Katniss watched the scene, shaking her head with irritation and some kind of fondness. They were entertaining to watch, like an old couple.

Like Peeta had said, they were exhausted, but the lingered for a while in front of the TV, watching the other Games programs. Unfortunately, those were only reruns of their arrivals at the Center or the Parade. Nothing new, no informations to glean, so they just went to get some sleep.

They both had the presentiment that they would need it the next day.

xxx

The breakfast table was quiet. Too quiet.

Haymitch was nursing one of his worst hangover, his head in his plate. Effie was her usual self but she wouldn’t look at him. The atmosphere was strangely ordinary and cold in the same time.

She and Peeta exchanged a look, daring the other to ask the question that was burning their tongue since the previous night. Peeta sacrificed himself for it.

“ _Hum, Effie?”_ He cleared his throat. 

“ _Yes Peeta dear?”_ Her smile was strained but her voice was soft. She was angry, but not with them.

“ _We’d like to ask you something. It’s quite… personal.”_

“ _Go on, tell me.”_ She was curious now, she had put down her cup and furrowed her eyebrows. 

“ _Is Effie Trinket your real name? Or is it a pseudonym? Like Ceasar or Claudius?”_

She took her time before answering, liking her lips and playing with her bracelets. 

“ _Well, my full name is Euphemia Trinket. Effie is a nickname.”_

“ _Oh yeah but… is it your birth name?”_

She took a deep breath. Haymitch had lifted his head to look at her.

“ _It is not my birth name, no.”_ she said with a big fake smile. “ _But it is my name now. It’s the name I use and the one on my papers so, yes, it is my name.”_ She was spreading butter frenetically on her toast, not meeting anyone’s eyes. She sounded like she was trying to convince herself of her words. “ _It is who I am.”_ That last part was added in a whisper and clearly for herself. Her eyes were glassy and her voice quavering.

“ _Effie...”_ Katniss tried, not used at comforting people. “We… _We didn’t mean to upset you. We’re sorry.”_ Peeta nodded and gave her an apologetic smile.

“ _It’s all right, do not worry. I.. I am just being silly.”_ she took a deep breath to calm herself and they ate in silence for the rest of the breakfast.

Just as they were going to leave for training, Effie entered the living room a serious look on her face.

“ _I am really sorry about earlier, I shouldn’t have reacted like that. I_ _was tired and i_ _t just reminded me...”_ she took their hands and pulled them to the couch. “ _Sit down, there is one question a still have to answer and I think it is the moment.”_ she gave a look to Peeta.

They sat on the couch, with Effie facing them in the armchair, her hands on her lap. She cleared her throat.

“ _Peeta, you asked me how I became an Escort.”_ he nodded. “ _Well, I didn’t ‘become’ an Escort. I have been raised as an Escort. We all have been. We are bought as babies or adopted in orphenage, like I have been. So, no Effie is not my birth name but it is my name, it is me. I know the other one but it is...”_ she focused on the coffee table, playing with her jewelry, not meeting their shocked gazes, searching for the right word. “... _Dead. It’s a deadname. It’s not who I am.”_

Katniss wasn’t expecting that. But it made sense in a way. That explained her loyalty to the Capitol at least. It was her home despite everything.

“ _So you grew up here?”_ she asked.

“ _Not really. I came here often, but I grew up in a foster family, related to the Games of course. My father was a Gamemaker._ _I was here around Games time and Tour._ _”_ Her smile was back, sad but back.

She looked relieved to have lifted this weigh off her shoulders. Katniss felt Effie’s eyes on her, she must have been wary of her reaction again. But she wasn’t mad at her. If anything she was sorry. It was no childhood to see people die and participate in it.

At least, she knew it was cruel and she was trying to make it… less unpleasant and barbaric. She wasn’t completely blind and brainwashed.

“ _Now, I don’t want to held you any longer! You have to go! My Victors”_ She winked at them, up on her feet, urging them to the elevator, her perfect Escort smile back on her face, like if nothing had happened.

“ _Thank you Effie.”_ Peeta said squeezing her hand as they entered the elevator.

She stayed there, never departing her smile until the doors closed on her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As usual, give me all your thoughts! Did you like this (long) chapter? Did you like the little bounding moments? What do you think will happen next?  
> Tell me everything!   
> xxx


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

The children were long gone but Effie was still standing in front of the elevator doors.

She hated this.

Lying.

Ironic considering that was what she had to do for a living.

Well… It wasn’t really a lie. She had found a family here. _That_ was the truth. Give it or take a few years...

Or sixteen…

God, she needed a cigarette!

She had not even taken a first drag on her cigarette that footsteps echoed behind her on the concrete of the roof.

“ _Hey.”_

“ _Fuck off Haymitch.”_ She really didn’t need _him_ on top of everything right now.

“ _Come on sweetheart, I literally saved your ass you can’t be mad at me!”_

She turned on her heels to face him, glaring daggers to his smug face. He had the nerve to be proud of himself!

“ _You ruined the night! All my work! I was going somewhere with this sponsor, and it was a big one believe me! We could have won a fortune just with him in one night! And you ruined it all Haymitch!”_ She was hissing because she could shout, not wanting for anyone around to overhear their argument but not being able to keep her anger in total control either. She needed to let it go, or she would break. It was all too much.

“ _He was touching you like a piece of meat… THEY were touching you! What was I supposed to do? Sit there and watch? I saved you from a_ _f_ _u_ _cking_ _gang rape Effie for fuck sake!”_ Was he truly that stupid or was he playing this offended knight in shining armor act?

“ _You didn’t save me from anything! I had everything in control! Like I always had! Where were you all these years Haymitch? What do you think I’ve been doing? How do you think that works?”_ She was standing right in front of him now, only stopping herself from slapping him. She could feel tears coming in her eyes and did her best to swallow them back before he could see her vulnerable. “ _Why do you even care anyway…?”_

He took his time thinking about what she’d just said, his eyebrows furrowing as he assimilated the information and guessed all the things they implied. _“_ _I... I… I don’t care about you. I would have done that for any woman in this club...”_ he stammered. An escape. As always. Always a neat trick to avoid facing real problems.

“ _You were supposed to come to help me in the first place remember? You didn’t do anything except drinking with your friends, and then suddenly you remembered my existence and ruined all my work…_ _They were a huge catch Haymitch. Like a Finnick’s-trident-happening kind of huge catch. Now they’re lost to us.”_ She didn’t even sound angry anymore. Just defeated, letting her arms fall on her sides with a ridiculous flapping sound. She didn’t even care about how unladylike and not proper it was.

She had sworn to herself that she would never lose hope and there she was now. Just as she thought things were going to get better, he ruined everything. He always ruined everything. Always him...

“ _Listen, I am sorry, ok? I’ll never try to save your ass, or any part of you again, all right?”_ He tried to joke but she didn’t bite. She took the apologizes however. They were scarce in his mouth and that’s what made her believe them. _“We’ll manage without them...”_ He tentatively put a hand on her shoulder.

She shrugged it away. Her cigarette had consumed herself without her help during their argument so she tossed it on the floor and took her head in her hands. She took a deep breath to regain her composure. “ _Yes, we will. We always do. I always do. I manage, you drink. That’s how we work. I have been a fool thinking it would change this time.”_ She walked around him and got back into the Penthouse without a look for him.

She went straight for her room. She had to go through her sponsor files all over again. Find someone else ready to sponsor the worst District. The forever loosing Dictrict. The joke. Even if the _Girl on fire_ thing made things a little easier this year, it attracted more curiosity than money.

And this time she would plan her strategy on herself alone. Haymitch was useless.

What had happened to him yesterday? She had been in the VIP booth with a few big sponsors, everything had been going on perfectly and he had appeared from nowhere, completely drunk, taking her by the arm and dragging her out, shouting insults to the men. There _had_ been wandering hands and drugs passing but nothing out of the common. He would have known if he had bothered coming before. That was only her job after all, being en _Escort._

A few minutes later, she heard the door open. He came to sit beside her on the bed, a glass in his hand. According to his breath it wasn’t his first. She didn’t acknowledge his presence and he didn’t say anything for while. He just watched her typing on… rather punching her poor innocent iPad.

He finally broke the awkward silence.

“ _Why didn’t you tell me?”_ She lifted en eyebrow at him and met his worried gaze. “ _I didn’t know you had to do… that. The other before you, they didn’t..”_

She softened a little. He was really ignorant then. His former escort never troubled themselves doing their job _properly_ that was known. But her might have seen it elsewhere.

“ _Haymitch_ … _I am an Escort. Everything is in the title really.”_

“ _Why didn’t you tell me?”_ He seemed really shaken by the news, and sorry too.

“ _I thought you knew. You’ve been in this longer than me, I thought you knew how things worked.”_ How could he not know that?

“ _I know how they work for Victors. Never really cared for Escorts.”_

“ _Because now you do? Care about your Escort?”_ She asked with a smirk. He was acting really weird this year, but she couldn’t say she didn’t like it. She disliked being interrupted in her work, but she did like having someone who cared for her. When it was necessary that is.

He scoffed and wrinkled his nose “ _I don’t care about YOU. You’re… good with the children that’s all.”_

She chuckled a little. “ _Thank you.”_ She answered in a low voice after a beat, not sure of if it would be welcome. He didn’t say anything, his eyes lost at the bottom of his soon to be empty glass. “ _You know, I really had everything under control. I… I am used to this. And I’ll do everything it will take this year. We’re gonna need it...”_ She put a hand on his shoulder and _he_ didn’t shrug it away. He just nodded his understanding of what she implied.

“ _I don’t like that. For anyone... But I promise I won’t be in your way again,_ _and I’ll try to help._ _”_ He sighed and stood up to leave. “ _But please, don’t ever wear that dress again, for everyone’s mental health.”_

“ _What dress?”_ She joked with a wink. She knew that dress had a certain effect on men. And women.

“ _Exactly!…”_ He chuckled shaking his head to expel the image from his mind _“See you later sweetheart.”_

She was more comfortable with this kind of banter. They never talked seriously or argued unless it was really important or very very bad. And this year was both. She got back to her sponsor research with relief and a strange warm feeling in her stomach.

They only got all together around the dinner table. The children had taken a walk outside after training – which was perfect for Effie’s romantic plan -, Haymitch had disappeared god knows where and come back just in time for dinner, and herself had been absorbed in her preparations for tonight’s party.

“ _So, how was training today?”_ She asked because neither of them seemed inclined to broach the subject.

“ _Hum.. weird.”_ Peeta winced, glancing furtively at Katniss who, for a change, was absorbed by the content of her plate. “ _Katniss actually made a friend.”_ he added with a smile tugging at the corner of his lips.

Katniss shot him a look. “ _Stop it!”_ and went back to her sulking.

Haymitch frowned. “ _A friend? You realize this isn’t exactly a summer camp, right?”_

This time it was to him that Katniss shot a look.

“ _That’s the girl from Eleven. She just follows Katniss everywhere, like a little shadow.”_ Peeta clarified.

“ _She is the only one who’s not afraid of me or eager to kill me. That’s a nice change. I won’t stop her._ _We didn’t even talked or anything._ _”_

“ _She is clever too. She managed to steal one of the Career’s knife. He fought for ten minutes with_ _an innocent_ _guy, accusing him. Sh_ _e_ _was just hidden there_ _at the top of a scaffolding_ _, watching, laughing_ _at them_ _with the knife in her hands. She caused quite a scene.”_ Peeta continued and Katniss chuckled and smiled fondly at the memory.

“ _That’s a way to play the Game. A clever one. Good for her”_ Haymitch stated coldly _. “How old is she?”_

“ _Twelve I think.”_ As Peeta answered, Katniss’ smile disappeared.

“ _Good, not a threat.”_ Haymitch shoulders relaxed.

They all remained very silent after that. They all knew what Katniss was thinking. Even Haymitch winced a little at his blunder, but he didn’t acknowledged it, it was only the truth after all. They had to think in the spirit of the Games.

After dinner, Effie and Haymitch went to their rooms to get ready for the night. When they came back to the living room, they expected to find the children there to say goodnight, but they had already gone to bed.

Once in the club, they went their separate ways. Haymitch had sworn he would try to find a few sponsors, but he ‘ _needed a glass first’,_ Dutch courage…

She let her coat to the cloakroom and stepped into the dance floor. Her black and sliver sparkly wrap dress was reflecting the lights and her heels allowed her to tower above the crowd.

She quickly spotted the sponsor she was searching for and walked toward them, at the VIP section’s bar. Haymitch wasn’t too far, in the armchair of the a secluded booth, in deep conversation with other Victors, Chaff among them, of course…

She hated him. She couldn’t even remember why. And he hated her too, for the one and only reason that she was an Escort. She wasn’t sure they even had had a proper conversation before securing their mutual dislike of each other.

She was torn from her musings by the man beside her, her target, who offered her a drink. She accepted and began her Escort seducing trick. In half an hour of flirting, smiling and flattering she had already secured an offer.

And the night was still young.

She kept going, from counter to counter, table to table, she danced, flirted, laughed, touched, even kissed sometimes.

She kept a close eye on Haymitch all the while. She saw him talk to a few men, with a very good business pokerface. She was actually impressed.

She was less impressed when she saw him talking and flirting with a beautiful woman. She was her exact opposite. Tall, dark hair, dark eyes, with perfect forms.

She didn’t understand where her animosity came from. She had asked him to go get sponsor, hadn’t she? Yet she couldn’t help herself from feeling a spike in her stomach. She had never seen that smile on him before. Or that seducing sparkle in his eyes.

She got back to the man talking to her, throwing glances in his direction from time to time. Just to check he didn’t do anything wrong. Just to be sure he wouldn’t embarrass her or cause a scene or a scandal on the social medias tomorrow.

News and pictures traveled fast on the Hunger Games sites…

She was beginning to be very tipsy. Every sponsor she had talked to had insisted on offering her one or several drinks and she had lost count…

Lets be honest, she was drunk, at the edge of wasted.

She indulged herself a break outside and a glass of water. She took advantage of this peaceful moment to check all the promises she had collected. Five, including a big one, at least 1 bitcoin. That was very good! She hoped Haymitch had secured a few ones himself. He seemed to have a touch with that woman, she was already half convinced, it wouldn’t need a lot of work to get her offer.

She got back to the club, took another cocktail and went in search of Haymitch.

He was back in his booth, this time with Chaff and Finnick. They all were pretty drunk too. He waved three signed papers at her face when he saw her coming closer.

The party was coming to an end and she was really feeling bad now, maybe she shouldn’t have taken that last glass after all…

She walked toward them, with the intention of taking Haymitch back to the Penthouse with her and talk about the Sponsors there. But once there she simply fall on an armchair and drank with them for a while. She didn’t have the strength to move. They were so drunk they didn’t even minded her presence, not even a snide remark about her or her dress.

Soon everything went black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soooo… a smaller chapter this time with a little cliffhanger.   
> Oh and yeah, Effie lied… Again… Sorry… (No. ^^)  
> So what do you think will happen after this blackout? Did Haymitch work well?  
> Reviews reviews reviews!! <3
> 
> (As I am writing those lines, one bitcoin is about 10 800 USD)


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

Haymitch didn’t know what to do.

He was looking at Effie, studying her, her every move, waiting for a sign, something, anything, telling him what to do.

Just one tiny little clue of whether she remembered the previous night or not.

But she was her usual bubbly Escort self, chatting with Peeta, rebuking Katniss, buttering her second toast and sipping from her mug of coffee. Only the bags under her eyes not entirely covered by the heavy layer of makeup betrayed her short and uncomfortable night.

For now, he was covered by his role of old grumpy hangovered man, but she would soon noticed something was odd with him. It wasn’t like him to walk on eggshells, especially around her. He is more the kind of man to put his foot in his mouth rather than beating around the bush…

He needed to find something to make her talk.

When the children finally left fro training and they were alone together, he tried something.

“ _Hey, sweetheart,”_ he winced at the word, he couldn’t help it, afraid it would trigger a reaction from her. But it didn’t and she simply turned to him with her usual smile. 

“ _Yes, Haymitch?”_ she emphasized his name to show her annoyance at the petname, but it wasn’t new. He relaxed a little. 

“ _You wouldn’t know where my watch is by any chance?”_

“ _Your watch? No._ _Why_ _would I? You should be more careful of your things Haymitch, I am not your mother!”_ She had sat down on the couch to check on her iPad and register the offers they won during the night hunt. 

“ _I don’t know, I assumed that you had brought me back here and put me to bed. As usual...”_ He tried. That would force her to talk. 

And he was right, her cheeks went red in a flash, her fingers stilled in the air above the tablet and her eyes widened. She cleared her throat.

“ _I hum… I did not bring you back last night no.”_

“ _Oh yeah? Who did then? I don’t remember coming back by myself.”_ He shrugged, scrutinizing every twitch in her face. 

“ _ I... I don’t know.”  _ She was crimson now, even with the makeup on, and she kept clearing her throat every three seconds. 

“ _ Oh…  _ _ Okay…”  _ he shrugged. “ _ How did you get back by the way?”  _ He was maybe pushing it a little, but he needed to know. 

“ _ I… I don’t…”  _ she stopped and sighed dramatically “ _ I don’t remember alright? I was too drunk. The only thing I remember is joining you and your friends and next thing I was in my bed and it was seven this morning! Are you happy? Come on, make fun of me Haymitch you’re dying to I can see! Enjoy it, it won’t happen again!”  _ She was mad and that’s why he knew it was the truth. He chuckled of relief. 

“ _ I won’t make fun of you sweetheart. I’m the pot here.”  _ He  coiled her nape with his hand on his way to his room, a little gesture he had never done before and they both froze, he took his hand back. “ _ I uh.. I will go look if I can find my watch somewhere.”  _ And he flew to his room and shut the door. 

S he didn’t remember. 

She didn’t remember. 

God, he had rarely been so relived in his life. 

One problem remained though.  _ He  _ remembered. 

Fuck he remembered so well... And he wasn’t sure he wanted to forget. 

He remembered taking her out of the club before she pass out, sitting her on a bench hoping that fresh air would do her good, giving her a bottle of water to sober her up a little. 

He remembered dragging her, leaning with all her weight on his side, back to the Center and into the elevator. 

And hell he remembered her, watching him in the eyes for half the ride, with a depth he was too drunk to try decipher, and saying “ _ We worked well tonight Haymitch, we are a good team together  _ _ don’t you think? _ _.”  _ and leaning in toward him slowly. He hadn’t stopped her, maybe he should have, but he had been to drunk to think and too intoxicated in her smell -alcohol vanilla and fruits -, to step back. Instead he had leaned in too and let her capture his lips in a heated kiss. He had responded eagerly, dazed by her smell, her taste and softness of her lips on his. 

He couldn’t forget that. Ever. 

That kiss had been enough to make him half hard and that had been the thing that  had  brought him back to reality. 

He had broke the kiss and  taken her to bed. He hadn’t found the strength to take her clothes off so he had simply taken her shoes off and lied her in her bed,  careful not to enjoy too much the feeling of her soft skin under his  palms.

Once back in his room, he had taken care of his not so little problem before  succumbing to the best sleep he had had in a long time. 

_ Shit… _

Just thinking again about it and he was...

No, no, no…  She was his Escort… They might have reached a certain sort of friendship along the years, but they certain l y weren’t friends with that kind of benefits.  He couldn’t afford to think about her this way... He passed his hands on his face a few times.

She didn’t remember, perfect. He would forget too. It couldn’t be that hard. He had forgotten a lot of other women along the years after all. 

xxx

They had the afternoon free of training. They were supposed to use it to prepare their interviews. 

Effie had taken Katniss in he r room with Ci n na to ‘ _ make a proper lady out of her’,  _ and he had ended alone with Haymitch. 

They had quickly ran away from the Penthouse and from the shrill screams of Effie to take refuge outside, in a quiet clearing by the lake. 

And here he was now… trapped. 

“ _ Listen boy...”  _ Haymitch was clearly embarrassed, but  _ he  _ was mortified. “ _ You can make something out of that. You both can. If you play the card of the star-crossed lovers, you’ll get a rain of support, and support,  _ _ here, _ _ is money, and money  _ _ means _ _ life.  _ _ Everybody enjoys a good Romeo and Juliet story.” _

“ _ I wouldn’t mind that if… If it wasn’t real. I don’t want to use my feelings for her like that. It’s… it’s not right.”  _

“ _ It’s not bad if it can save your lives Peeta.”  _ He was growing annoyed by his repeated refusals,  he had curled his hands into fists but he was keeping his voice low because people were passing by, not that far from them. 

“ _ Our lives? There will only be one to get out of here Haymitch and...”  _ He was cut by the sound of someone shouting, or  rather  singing, not far from them. Haymitch had turned his gaze toward the noise – that was coming closer now. His eyes had gone wide and his eyebrows had reached his receding hairline. He turned around to see the source of this extreme astonishment.

It was a small woman, between twenty-five and thirty years old. She was thin, her hair was black,  clearly dyed,  long  on her shoulders  with short bangs on her  forehead. She was wearing black slacks with classic Dr Martens and a long khaki leather raincoat. She had a beer bottle in one hand and was waving the other in the air in rhythm with the song coming out of her black coated lips. 

He had to admit she was a sight. 

The  weird thing was that he couldn’t understand what she was singing. It wasn’t in English, of that he was sure.  But, if the face he was making was to be trusted, Haymitch did. 

*

_ I l suffira d’une étincelle _

_ d’un mot d’amour  _

_ pour... _

_ Allumer le feu!  _

_ Allumer le feu!  _

_ * _

S he had reached them now and was fixing Haymitch who was still speechless. Well, her sunglasses were fixed on Haymitch at least.  Peeta was sure that there was a mad glint in the eyes behind them.

He came back to his senses and cleared his throat. 

“ _ Camille!  What a surprise!  What are you doing here?”  _ His tone was flat and ironically cheerful. 

“ _ Come on Haymitch, I know that deep down you’re happy to see me!”  _ She bumped his arm with her shoulder. She was so small her head barely past his shoulders. And yet she was everything but intimidated. “ _ Jo called me, of course. I had to see this with me own eyes!”  _ She was so enthusiastic it grazed hysteria.

“ _ See what?”  _ He must have known her well because he wasn’t  socked at all by her behavior, but he seemed… wary of her, like if he wasn’t sure she could be trusted. He was keeping Peeta behind him in a protective stance. 

“ _ Your girl on fire of course! She’s all everybody is talking about!”  _ Then she finally turned her face toward Peeta, like if she hadn’t noticed him until then. “ _ And the baker’s boy too, naturally.”  _ She added with a smirk outstretching a hand for him to shake. “ _ Oh, where are my manners, if my mother were there…  I am Camille, 66 th Victor, District Seve n, delighted to meet you!”  _ She never departed her almost feral smirk while she spoke or when he shook her hand. He felt ill-at-ease under her hidden gaze, like if he was being… evaluated. 

“ _ I’m… happy to meet you too...”  _

Her smirk changed again when she looked behind his shoulders  and she lifted a perfectly shaped eyebrow. 

“ _ Well, speaking of the wolf… I’ll leave you then. See you soon I hope.”  _ She briefly turned her head to his mentor “ _ Haymitch.”  _ He nodded back and she walked away a little less cheerfully  but hu mm ing her song again. 

Peeta turned to see her retreat and saw what had made her go. Katniss, Cinna and Effie were coming their way. They were  only  a few feet away and they could hear  their encounter.

“ _ Cinna,”  _ she nodded at him who nodded back smiling, then nodded at Katniss with a smirk and then greeted Effie with a pointed and insistent “ _ Euphemia!”.  _ Peeta wasn’t sure but she even might have cur t s ey a little while passing beside her.  Effie didn’t answer her, she just watched with wide incredulous eyes  and gaped.  She nearly  tripped  on a  root  watching the woman  dancing  while  walking away. 

They both stayed frozen until the other arrived,  Haymitch had his ey e brows furrowed and a thoughtful look. 

“ _ What was that?” _ Katniss asked when she reached them.

“ _ Camille, former Seven mentor, work for the Organization in Canada now. Half French, half crazy.”  _ Haymitch answered, but Peeta wasn’t really listening anymore. 

‘ _ Your girl on fire’  _ and ‘ _ the baker’s boy’,  _ those words echoed in his head. The  _ girl on fire. _ Only her.  _ She  _ was the event here, _ she _ was important. She was the one who attracted the Sponsors and the eyes.  Not him. Never him. He was used to it. At least this time he could be useful.

They all wanted her to win. He did too. And he could help her to. He decided to accept Haymitch’s plan, little did he care if it embarrassed her after all. As long as it could save her life… That was the only thing he desired.

Haymitch, Cinna and Katniss were talking together but Effie was strangely silent. Her eyes were bright and her eyes staring at nothing.

“ _ Are you ok Effie?”  _ It wasn’t like her to be silent, especially on a subject like the big Games show. 

“ _ Oh yes I am perfectly fine! I was just lost in my train of thoughts.”  _ She answered with a smile and took back her part in the conversation. 

T hey talked for a while there before going back to the Penthouse for dinner. Afterwards, they lingered in the living room, Effie making most of the small talk. 

“ _ She seemed crazy.”  _ Katniss said out of blue after staying silent all along.

“ _ Who dear?”  _

“ _ That woman at the lake.”  _

Effie’s face closed and Haymitch took the lead of this part of the conversation. 

“ _ She is… A little. We all are…”  _

“ _She is something”_ Peeta said remembering the tiny hurricane coming toward them.  Haymitch chuckled, Katniss raised an eyebrow at him and Effie mouth curled in a smile both polite and fond. 

“ _ Yeah… _ _ And damn dangerous too, very clever. Too bad she’s been in Finnick’s shadow...”  _ he added thoughtfully. 

“ _ How did she win?”  _ Katniss asked. She was more  and  more eager to find new strategies lately Peeta had noticed.

“ _ It’s late, we should all go to bed now.”  _ Effie said  wincing but it fell in deaf hears, they all  remained in their seats,  eyes glued to Haymitch. 

“ _ She hid most of the time, collecting  _ _ things to make traps. She never killed for free. Once out of self-defense, once for food and once for a thread. Very thin  _ _ and resistant _ _. Invisible.  _ _ The last night she was the last with the Career pack.  _ _ She chose a nice spot in the forest, in a little clearing and tied the thread to the trees all around it. She sat in the middle, lighted a fire and waited. They ran to her, all four of them.”  _ he paused, taking a sip of his glass. “ _ Decapitated. By the thread. Clean, quick. She didn’t even look. Not a single glance. She kept toasting her piece of bread in the fire and ate it waiting for the Rescuing team.”  _ He laughed at the memory. Katniss made a n impressed  face

a nd Effie was squirming in her armchair, uncomfortable. 

“ _ There Haymitch, enough graphic details for tonight thank you. It’s time for bed now.”  _

“ _So, yeah, she might have been a little crazy to begin with.”_ He continued, ignoring her. 

“ _ Well, if you don’t want to go I will. Goodnight.”  _ She said standing up, her eyes bright and her jaw clenched. She was vexed and upset and Peeta took pity on her, even if her reaction seemed a little over the top. 

“ _ I’m going too. Haymitch, can I talk too you for a second?”  _ He nodded in direction of his room prompting him to follow. Haymitch nodded and got with difficulties to his feet. 

“ _ Well I guess I’ll go too…”  _ Katniss stood and headed straight to her room. 

“ _ I’ll do it.” _ He simply said on the threshold of his door. “ _ But… Find a good way to bring up the subject during the interview. I don’t want it to be  too humiliating for her.”  _ Haymitch nodded with a knowing smile, patted his shoulder and lef t.

He closed his door and collapsed on his bed. 

‘ _The girl on fire and the baker’s boy’ …_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So!   
> A mysterious character, a troubled Haymitch, an upset Effie, a determined Katniss and a defeated Peeta… Tell me all your thoughts about that!   
> xxx
> 
> *  
> It’ll just need a spark  
> and a love note   
> to  
> Light the fire!   
> Light the fire!  
> *  
> This song is “Allumer le feu” by Johnny Hallyday and I never thought I could put it in a Hayffie fic and yet I did!^^


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

It was the day of the evaluations.

The ambiance was tensed in the waiting room. She wouldn’t have been surprised if it had only been between them and the other Tributes, but it was also tensed between her and Peeta and that made her really uncomfortable. She was hot in her uniform and she kept pulling on her collar, stupidly hoping that she would get more air like that.

She didn’t like that, he was her only landmark, her only friend here, and now, even him was ignoring her. Even he was mad at her... And she didn’t know why. That was the worst part.

It had all happened so fast this morning, at breakfast. One minute they were talking about strategy with Haymitch and Effie and the next he was shouting about how he ‘ _had no chance of winning’_ and ‘ _wasn’t the Victor people wanted’,_ before storming out to his bedroom.

But she had no time to think about that though. She would talk to him later. After.

For now, she had only one thing to focus on. Haymitch’s last advice to them.

“ _Make sure they remember you.”_

When she was called, she glanced one last time at Peeta but his eyes remained glued to his shoes. She took a deep breath and walked into the gym.

It was odd to see it empty, with only the targets she had asked for in from of her and the bow next to her.

She took a look at the mezzanine where the Judges and Sponsors were supposed to be standing to watch her. They were there, but sprawled in their seats, talking and laughing like if she wasn’t there at all. Unbelievable...

She cleared her throat.

Nothing.

“ _Katniss Everdeen!”_ They finally shut up and turned toward her. “ _District Twelve.”_

She walked to the bow and arrows, surrounded by a heavy silence. She took one arrow and aimed.

She shot…

The arrow landed just above the shoulder of the target.

She had aimed for the heart… What the hell happened?…

She didn’t realize right away but the buzzing of conversation and laughter had resumed.

She took an other arrow and aimed again. This time taking its weight and the absence of wind into account.

She had never shot indoor before. She should have tried at least once in training, she should have thought about that.

She shot again.

This time it landed right in the center. In the heart.

She turned to the mezzanine expecting a reaction but no one met her gaze. They were all back to their talks and jokes. And was that…? They had brought a _fucking_ roasted pig there while she was shooting? Really? Were they jokes to them? Didn’t they care at all?

That was the last straw for her.

She took an arrow and aimed.

***woosh***

The apple that had been in the pig’s mouth was now pinned to the wall.

They all fell deadly silent and turned slowly to glare at her with very comical horrified faces.

She simply stayed standing, facing them. Irritated but proud of herself.

“ _Thank you. For your consideration.”_ She took a bow, extending her arms behind her, before storming out of the room.

Well at least they would remember her…

xxx

Of course, it didn’t please Effie.

“ _Do yo realize what you have done? Attacking Gamemakers and Sponsors like that? Katniss what were you thinking? Oh my God….”_ She was almost hysterical, waving her arms in the air. It was even more ridiculous that they looked huge in her big emerald puffy sleeves.

Cinna was trying to calm her but it was a lost cause, and Peeta was sitting next to her. Awkwardly silent.

“ _I just got mad, they were the ones being impolite._ _You should be lecturing them, not me. I simply reminded them to mind their manners._ _”_ She might be pushing it a little but Effie was overreacting and that was grating on her nerves.

“ _Mad?!_ _You..._ _”_

That’s the moment Haymitch chose to finally appear. For the first time she realized, he had a big genuine smile on his face while walking to the seat opposite to hers. He gave her a thumb up behind Effie’s back.

“ _Please Haymitch say something, she won’t listen to a word I say!”_

“ _Nice shooting sweetheart!”_ he laughed falling in the armchair.

“ _Haymitch really!”_ She stomp her foot, a rare unladylike gesture. _“Don’t you realize the implications for all of us?”_

“ _All of us? You weren’t there, I wasn’t there. There won’t be any repercussions on us princess. And she will soon be “punished” enough so… loosen your corset and have a drink.”_ He rolled his eyes at her and she sat next to Cinna, arms and legs crossed. If she didn’t know her better Katniss would have said she was sulking. But ‘ _a proper lady do not sulk’!_ _“_ _I would have given anything to see that!”_ he added, lifting his glass to her. That made her smile.

They waited for the results of the evaluations, staring at the screen quietly. She was a little pacified by the fact that Haymitch approved her actions, he was the Victor after all.

Finally, the Capitol logo appeared, followed by Caesar’s face.

_Marvel Johnson, 9._

_Glimmer Taylor, 8…_

Of course, all the Careers had ranked high scores… The others weren’t too bad either except for the youngest ones.

_Peeta Mellark, 8._

They all smiled at him, he seemed surprised to get such a high score. Katniss had assured him he was strong. He refused to believe her…

“ _Congratulations Peeta, we can work with that.”_ Effie assured him.

_And finally, Katniss Everdeen, with a score of… 11._

Everyone froze, eyes wide, mouths gaping. She couldn’t take her eyes off the numbers next to her face on the screen.

“ _Good job sweetheart!”_

“ _Congratulations Katniss.”_

“ _Katniss that’s…”_

She only moved when she saw Cinna stand up a glass in his hand and all the others following him.

“ _To Katniss Everdeen, the Girl on fire!”_

“ _Told you they’d like your guts.”_

It was surreal. She couldn’t register everything that was happening around her, but she noticed one thing. Peeta wasn’t sulking anymore, he was congratulating her like the others, a smile on his lips.

She didn’t even know how she made it to her bed that evening. Everything was a blur. The only thing she knew was that the next day would be the last one. The interview and then… the arena.

She had to succeed at the interviews. She had to win. For Prim.

xxx

Effie poured herself a generous amount of vodka in a glass before collapsing on the couch of the Penthouse.

This year was too much. Way too much.

First the Volunteering, then the all _Girl on fire_ thing, their crazy star-crossed lovers plan, and now Peeta’s outburst and wish to be trained alone, Katniss’s performance, and…

Oh Lord she was so so tired…

“ _Not going to the party tonight princess?”_ She was _princess_ today, very well…

“ _Of course I am! I just need a minute.”_ she sighed, sprawling herself in her seat in a very unladylike manner.

“ _Come on, it’s not that bad. See, they liked it! They wanted a show she gave them a show. Nothing will happen.”_ He patted her shoulder on his way to his bottle. He was right, she knew he was right. But she couldn’t get rid of the bad feeling in her guts. Something was strange this year. Something had changed…

She finished her glass and went to her room to get ready. Her black silk dress would be perfect. It was short, with a high neckline and left her back bare. She added a long golden necklace to embellish her back, black Louboutin, red lipstick, and she was ready to go break Sponsors hearts.

When she got back to the living room to fetch Haymitch she found him staring at her, his mouth open.

“ _What now?”_ She wasn’t in the mood for his sarcasm or his jokes.

He shook his head “ _Nothing… Let’s go.”_

Haymitch remained weirdly silent all the walk to the club and when they arrived he made a beeline to the bar where Chaff was waiting for him, without a word for her.

Little did she cared because she remained frozen on the threshold.

It wasn’t the usual club. This one was more of a pub, with old leather seats in the booths, wooden tables and counters and a little stage in the middle of the room.

And on this stage were musicians playing. A double bassist, a trumpeter, a drummer and in the middle of them Camille singing and playing the piano. They were performing _Sympathique_ by Pink Martini.

_Ma chambre a la forme d’une cage_

_Le soleil passe son bras par ma fenêtre,_

_Les chasseurs à ma porte comme les p’tits soldats_

_Qui veulent me prendre_

Effie was back in her childhood. When her mother listened to that album over and over again. When she was doing the laundry, the cleaning, cooking…

_Je ne veux pas travailler,_

_Je ne veux pas déjeuner,_

_Je veux seulement l’oublier,_

_Et puis je fume…_

That specific song had always resonated in her heart. She had the suspicion that it was because of it that she had begun to smoke as a teen…

She hadn’t listened to it since those days but she still new the lyrics by heart. And Camille’s voice was extraordinary. She didn’t even realize that her eyes were full of tears ready to flow on her cheeks. She walked in a daze to the closest empty table, her eyes still fixed on the girl, and sat. Some tears had rolled on her powdered cheeks now but she couldn’t care less. She was too far gone in her memories.

Her mother… her house… her big brother...her little sister… all those things lost to her now…

She startled when she felt a hand on her shoulder and heard a familiar male voice whispering directly in her hear.

“ _Hey, you okay sweetheart?”_ he was frowning and seemed genuinely worried. Even Chaff was watching her with a puzzled look. That when she realized the tears on her cheeks. She quickly wiped the tears off and nodded with a smile.

“ _Yes, yes, sorry. I was… just... thinking.”_

“ _Alright.”_ He left her with a look meaning ‘ _get yourself back together, don’t get yourself in trouble’._

The song was over now. She took advantage of the crowd cheering and applauding to go to the restroom to fix her makeup. And her mind while she was at it. She couldn’t afford to be so easily distracted.

She came back at her table and tried to catch the barman’s eyes. When he finally glanced at her, she gave him a sign that she was ready. A minute later, a glass of tequila landed in front of her on her table and the two sponsors she had a meeting with sat at each side of her.

She lit a cigarette, took a sip in her glass, crossed her legs… She made a show of it. Of herself.

That was who she was now.

They were watching her silently, drinking their beers and eyeing her from head to toe. She spoke first.

“ _So, you want the Escort on fire tonight?”_ she gave them her best seducing smile. They laughed, a carnivorous laugh, like predators in front of their prey.

She had never done that, the _Rendez-vous._ They were usually reserved for _important_ _negotiations_ and District Twelve had rarely needed them. And they were not known to be for gentle dates either.

“ _Are you as hot as your Girl? For now we’re satisfied but we need to know if you’re ready to go all the way...”_ He was a pig. It was written all over his face. If it was only her she would have punched him in the face, or elsewhere. But there was the children now, and she already has fulfilled her contingent of mistakes.

“ _Are_ _you ready to go all my way?”_ She answered as playfully as she could. They laughed and the closest of her put his hand on her thigh. 

T hey were interrupted by a shadow appearing over her from behind. The man turned his head and seemed surprised. 

She turned her head to discover Camille, standing beside the other man a hand on his shoulder. 

“ _ You seemed to have fun around here. Do you mind if I join?”  _ she said with a big s eductive s mile showing each one of her very white teeth,  her eyes on her. 

T he men looked at each other, asking the other what to do. They were wary of Victors and they were certainly wondering if they would need to pay her or to give money to her District, or if it was okay if she was the one to propose.

“ _ No need, thank you. We are perfectly good by ourselves aren’t we?”  _ she said before they could answer, giving her a pointed look. She didn’t want anyone to interfere. Certainly not her…  But she didn’t move. Waiting for  _ their _ answer. 

“ _Come on love, the more the merrier!”_ One of the man said while the other leaned in to whisper in her hear “Y _ou’ll get a bonus for this if you play well, princess.”_ before kissing her on the cheek. She needed all her strength not to vomit right there on his lap.

“ _I am not your princess.”_ she hissed, softening her words with a caress on his leg. “ _But okay. At one condition, she and I, we play separately. No foursome.”_ Camille nodded imperceptibly at her, that wasn’t what she wanted either she could guess…

“ _I am fine with that. Two for the price of one anyway._ _We’ll switch!_ _”_ He winked at his friend and they stood up to guide them to the back of the club. Where the secret rooms were. She glared at Camille all the way but her face remained perfectly blank. She glanced at Haymitch but he was very carefully avoiding to look at the scene. She felt tears coming to her eyes but she swallowed them quickly. _This is your job Effie. You’re doing this for them._

“ _I’ll keep you, princess.”_ The man with wandering hands said, taking a key in his pocket and opening the door in front of them.

She watched his friend walk to an other room, dragging Camille with him with a hand at the small of her back, not to say on her ass.

“ _I. Am. Not. Your princess.”_ she said again, but this time he gripped her by the hair and shoved her into the room violently before slamming it shut.

“ _Tonight you’ll be anything I’ll want.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Effie… sorry for the little angst here.  
> I couldn’t help putting a Twin Peaks reference in this story and the bar scene with Questions in a world of blue screamed “escort” to me so… There it is! (If you didn'tsee the serie or the movie, run! This is a masterpiece!! ;)  
> As usual, tell me your thoughts, I always enjoy all your reviews!  
> xxx


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

“ _What the hell happened to her?”_

Haymitch didn’t answer. He didn’t know. And that was the problem.

He kept his eyes at the bottom of his soon to be empty glass of whiskey.

He wasn’t worried for her, no. Why would he be? They weren’t really _friends_. They disliked each other, but they had learn to… _function_ together. She was only doing her job, she knew what she was getting into, so, no, he wasn’t worried for her. He wasn’t...

“ _Mate?”_

“ _Yeah? Oh uh… I don’t know. She’s weird lately.”_ he answered flatly without looking at his friend. “ _Well ‘lately’ no, she’s weird, period.”_ That was true, she _was_ weird, he had never understood her and he wasn’t progressing on that. Not that he wanted to. Why would he?…

Chaff frowned and got lost in his thoughts for a while too. They stayed silent like that a few minutes, only drinking and replenishing their glasses when needed.

Haymitch was trying hard not to look at his escort in the mirror behind the counter. At the two men sitting with her. At their hands on her legs...

She had signed for that. He had nothing to say.

She had made sure he had understood the last time he had tried something…

He startled when Chaff’s glass hurt violently the counter beside him. His friend was looking in the mirror too so he glanced at it to see what had caught his attention.

Camille was standing next to the table, touching one of the men in an everything but innocent manner.

Chaff was very fond of the girl, he knew, and he wasn’t mad at her like Haymitch was for accepting a job inside the Organization. Haymitch had felt betrayed but Chaff hadn’t said anything about that, he was even defensive when the subject was brought up.

She must have heard the glass too because she glanced at them furtively. It had been for a millisecond and the look had been directed to Chaff more than him but he thought he saw guilt in her eyes. The look had felt like an apology.

“ _What is she doing?”_ he asked but Chaff didn’t answer right away. He kept his eyes on her for a moment and when it became clear that she wouldn’t look at them again, he turned back to face the counter and shrugged.

“ _I don’t know and I don’t want to.”_

“ _Is she trying to steal Effie’s Sponsors? I thought she wasn’t mentoring anymore...”_

“ _I don’t think so...”_

He wouldn’t get anything from his friend about her apparently. Chaff had been like a father figure to her when she had won. Like Haymitch had been for Finnick the year before. He could understand that he was shaken to see her doing that. That was an Escort attitude. Or a Career mentor one.

He took a closer look at her.

She had changed since Jo’s victory. She was thinner, her hair were black like a crow now -last time he had seen her they had been burgundy- and it was contrasting with her very clear blue eyes. One could have found her scary with her sharp features, straight nose and high cheekbones. She had charisma, but she wasn’t really pretty.

Unlike Effie.

Effie was stunning.

A shame she was so irritating… and that she was an escort. Of course…

“ _Maybe she knows them, she’s in PR after all. Maybe she was the one who introduced them to the Games_ _or something_ _.”_ He tried to appease his friend, maybe she was simply maintaining the relations, maybe she wasn’t going to…

“ _And what do you think PR means Haymitch? Tell me!”_ He was angry now. He slammed his glass against the counter again. The barman – a fat man in his forties, a disgusting pimp- shot him a glare but looked away when he realized who he was facing. “ _Do you think ‘PR’ outside are different from ‘PR’ inside?”_ he hissed nodding toward Effie at the end.

He had never thought about that. The prostitution of Victor was a thing -he had himself suffered of it in his youth-, but it only happened during the Games or the Tour, never outside the City. And taking a job in the Organization sounded more like a promotion to him, not… an extension.

“ _What? But why? Why did she accept that?”_ Why would she accept that willingly? She had a strong personality she could easily have said no. She had played the Games, she had done nothing reprehensible.

Chaff chuckled. “ _You… nah, can’t tell you.”_ he took a sip and turned it into his mouth, thoughtful. “ _We all have our tale of woe...”_ he muttered watching them retreat to the back of the bar into the mirror.

He seemed to know a lot more than him about her. He felt uncomfortable with that, like left behind. He hated being hidden things. Even if he trusted Chaff, he finished his glass and left, slightly angry at him. He went back to the Penthouse, absolutely not drunk enough to bear the sight of Effie when she would come back.

But he would wait for her. No doubt she would need it…

When she finally came back, in the middle of the night, she was a mess. Her makeup was smudged, her dress was torn and one of her heels had broken. But when she spotted him, she smiled, like a good Escort ought to.

“ _Oh Haymitch! You’re still here so late? You weren’t waiting for me I hope!”_ Her attitude was perfect but her words were slightly slurred. Drunk or drugged he couldn’t say.

“ _Actually I was.”_ He said simply, flatly, without judgment or sarcasm for once, handing her a glass of vodka. Her eyes traveled from the glass to him warily, her visibly clouded brain trying to determine if he was a threat or not, if she could trust him. In the end, she took it and fell in the couch next to him.

She stayed silent, hugging herself with her feet under her. She looked so small like that, so fragile…

He stopped thinking for an instant and put an arm around her shoulders to bring her to him. He froze when he realized, expecting her to bolt but she didn’t. She leaned against him and began crying, to his utmost surprise. He had never seen her cry. He wasn’t even sure Escort were allowed to cry… But now she was sobbing in earnest in his arms and he was petrified.

He couldn’t do anything else than tightening his embrace and wait for her to calm down, occasionally caressing her arm in a soothing gesture. He would have thought it would be awkward, but it was strangely comfortable…

He didn’t dwell on what it meant. Or what it could mean.

For now he was just comforting an old friend. It’ll have to be enough.

She calmed down after a while, but she didn’t say anything, only sniffing from time to time. Not very _ladylike_ but he kept the joke for himself. It wasn’t the moment to rile her up. He remained mute instead, waiting for her to break the awkwardness that had settled now.

She just drank the glass he had given her, still huddled in his side. He was beginning to fear she would fall asleep in his arms.

She finally sat up straight again and turned toward him. Her eyes were glassy from the tears she had shed and the alcohol she had drank, and they darted from his eyes to his mouth. He didn’t move when she leaned in closing her eyes. He didn’t respond at first when her lips met his, but when she insisted, he caved and kissed her back but kept it chaste.

He found back the sensation he remembered from the last time. The softness of her lips, her sweet taste mixed with alcohol, her spicy and sugary smell…

She broke the kiss first. Her eyes remained on his mouth, afraid of what she would find in his eyes. She certainly expected disgust, but it wasn’t what she would have found. And it was certainly better if she never find out what was in his eyes at this moment…

“ _Thank you.”_

The words were whispered so low that he barely heard them. The next second she was up and almost running away from him to her bedroom.

He stayed there, processing what had just happened.

Whatever…

With his luck, she would most likely not remember it in the morning…

xxx

Effie was sitting backstage, next to Cinna, in the middle of the crowd of stylists and Escorts running around, waiting impatiently for the interviews to begin. She was drumming her finger on her armrest and tapping her foot on the floor, and people around began to throw her irritated glances.

Finally, the lights turned off in the public, and Caesar appeared on stage, with his signature smile and catchphrase.

She didn’t really pay attention to the other kids. She was restless. They had bet so much on their crazy plan, the children had to be perfect. She couldn’t bear the thought of doing all the things she had done for nothing. It was too late, it had to work… They had no choice. _She_ had no choice.

When Cinna stood up to go get Katniss, her heart was racing so fast she felt like if it was going to explode.

And where was Haymitch? She hadn’t seen him that day, she had searched him everywhere but he was nowhere to be found…

Finally, Katniss was on stage. She stood up to get closer from the screen. She was practically alone in the room now. Only remained a few stylist talking together and the staff of the show.

_Come on Katniss, be charming. Eyes bright, chin up, smile on!_

“ _What?!”_

_Oh no…_

“ _I said, that was quite an entrance you made at the Parade. Do you want to talk to us about it?”_

She was doing well, very well even… She was smiling – and that was certainly Effie’s biggest victory here- and the sponsors were smiling and laughing. Well, she guessed they were smiling and laughing behind their masks. She was witty and authentic, that was very good. And she was absolutely stunning.

She wasn’t expecting the return of Cinna’s magic flames. That was genius! The whole assembly was on fire too now!

“ _I have one last question for you Katniss. It’s about your sister.”_

_Oh no… again…._

“ _What you did was really unexpected and unprecedented. It was really brave. But what was the last thing you said to her?”_

_Be careful Katniss… Be careful…_ her smile was gone, she was sad but if she played it well it could be endearing. 

“ _I promised that I would come back. That I would come back for her...”_

“ _And I’m sure you will.”_ he took her hand and kissed it. “ _Ladies and gentlemen Katniss Everdeen, the Girl on fire!”_

Effie ran to get her at the exit of the stage. Katniss was still flustered but relief was all over her face.

“ _You did great my dear! Really great!”_ she told her taking her in her arms before dragging her backstage. Katniss endured the hug and gave it back, albeit reluctantly. She was out of breath just by walking and was clutching Effie’s arms.

Lazy applause rang from behind them, they both startled and turned around.

“ _Nice job_ _sweetheart!”_ Haymitch was standing against the wall, leaning against the wall. He walked slowly to join them. He was drunk again…

“ _Thank you.”_ She smiled genuinely.

“ _And nice dress too!”_ he winked at her. Effie guessed that he had something to do with the little flamed surprise then. That was what he been up to all day. He turned his head toward her and eyed her from head to toes. “ _Not yours.”_ he added for her sake with his insufferable smirk. Katniss chuckled.

She glared. There was nothing wrong with her dress, it was _Haute-Couture._ Not too long but not too short, in a pinkish purple silk flowing around her legs and a very flattering bustier. It was perfect. _She_ was perfect.

Their little gaze battle stopped when Peeta appeared on the screen.

Everything was going as planned. He was funny, handsome, charming.

Haymitch was staring at the screen with a frown. His arms crossed and fingers moving in a rare demonstration of tension.

“ _So Peeta, do you have a special someone back home?”_

“ _No, No not really...”_

“ _Come on I cannot believe it! A handsome young man like you!”_

“ _Well, there… there is this one girl. But she never really looked at me that way so…”_

Caesar sighed.

“ _Well, I’ll tell you what Peeta. You’re gonna win this thing, and when you get home after being missing for weeks, she’_ _ll have to go_ _out with_ _you.”_

“ _Well, that’s nice but I don’t think it’s going to help me...”_

“ _And why is that?”_

Peeta sighed, hesitated. Either he was really a great actor or he was having second thoughts… He couldn’t stop now...

“ _Because she came here with me.”_

“ _Well that’s bad luck...”_

“ _Yeah...”_

“ _And I wish you the best of luck._ _Ladies and gentlemen, Peeta Mellark!”_

People applauded him warmly while he got down the stage.

The moment he entered the room, Katniss jump on him and pinned him to the wall.

“ _What was that?! You stop talking to me and now you say you have a crush on me?!”_

“ _I.. I...”_

Haymitch and Cinna ran to take Katniss off his throat. Effie was looking around, afraid of who would witness this outburst.

“ _He made you a favor.”_

“ _He made me look weak.”_

“ _He made you look desirable. Both of you. Which in your case can’t hurt sweetheart!”_

“ _He is right Katniss”_ Cinna said and she stopped struggling. She seemed to listen to him more than to anyone else now.

“ _Now we can sell the star-crossed lovers from Twelve...”_

“ _But we’re not_ _star-cross_ _...”_

“ _It’s a television show. Kind of… anyway,_ _being ‘in love’ with that boy might just get you sponsors which could save your damn lives!”_

She remained silent all the way to the Penthouse, and Peeta was sulking. He had certainly hoped a little more gratitude from her, or at least not such a reaction. All the more that for him, it wasn’t an act… poor boy… Seeing the person you love most going into the arena…

They made their last recommendations, ‘ _staying away from the Cornucopia’_ was always Haymitch’s last advice. And the most important. She took care of the heartbreaking goodbyes. She could help the tears from falling on her cheeks this times when she took them in her arms.

“ _We’ll see each other soon I am sure!”_

Then the kids went to their rooms and she and Haymitch went to the living room for a last drink before the nightmare begin.

“ _So it was you? The flames?”_ she asked. She already knew the answer but she wanted to gear the whole story.

“ _Yeah. We thought, with Cinna, that a little reminder couldn’t be bad. For them and for her.”_ he answered pouring two glasses of whiskey. Whiskey wasn’t her favorite poison but she took it with a smile, shivering when their hands brushed. “ _It wasn’t easy to do last minute but he managed very well.”_

“ _Good. Very good idea.”_ he smiled in return to the compliment. Then her mind wandered to much less agreeable fields. “ _Did you gave all the papers?_ _And how much do we have in total? Is it enough?”_

His face closed, his smile disappeared and his eyes landed on her with a thoughtful and sad expression.

“ _Enough that we can stay here tonight._ _I think y_ _ou deserve a night off princess.”_ He said with more fondness and affection than anyone had given her for a long time.

“ _Yes. Yes I’d love that...”_ She answered with a fake smile that made her look even sadder and more tired. “ _About yesterday...I...”_

“ _No harm done princess. You were tired, high, shocked. It’s okay really.”_ he stood up and so did she and they were facing each other. “ _I can’t say it was unpleasant...”_ he added with a wink.

She laughed and he took her cheek in his hand, moving his thumb up and done tenderly. It wanted to be comforting but she felt more than that in this gesture. They stared in each other’s eyes for longer than what property allowed. Her hand had settled on his chest but she could say when it had happened.

“ _I…_ _I should go…”_

“ _Yes.”_

They didn’t move. Leaning in and back but never more, their foreheads brushed a few times, so did their noses. Just enjoying each other’s warmth. The moment was surreal. It would never have happened a year ago. They would have been yelling at each other, or he would have been passed out drunk at this time of the night and she would have been doing all the paper work.

What was it this year that everything was turned upside down?

She cleared her throat and he finally let go of her. She retreated to her room without looking at him, who was still standing in the middle of the corridor, trying to persuade herself she didn’t miss his warmth, the rough and soft sensation of his hand on her face.

Persuading herself that she didn’t want more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well well well… Next time we will free the lions in the arena!   
> What did you think of this chapter? Will Haymitch stop his denial? Will they be able to keep their hands of each other much longer? Will they be reasonable? Tell me everything! ;)  
> (yes two chapters in two days, I am feeling generous, that’s because I love reading your reviews so much I can’t wait ! Xxx)


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

It had been a week now.

A week that she had seen that black car taking her sister.

Since, she had done everything she could to find her back, but she was getting out of options.

She had gone to the police station first. They had laughed at her. Right at her face.

“ _Come on girl, let your sister have a meeting with her secret girlfriend will you? We have more important things to do.”_ Like counting their own toes apparently… there wasn’t much more to do in this small town. They didn’t only take their mornings, their whole days were for coffee and contemplation… 

She had gone back the following day. And the next. They finally consented to have a look at her case, but only because she had dragged her mother with her this time, even if she was the one doing all the talking.

Her mother had gone completely mute since Katniss disappearance. Either she felt guilty for it or she was devastated again…

They had heard her, yes, but they  still weren’t doing anything. They had come to inspect their house, useless as nothing had happened there, and then the road where it had happened, but there wasn’t anything to see now, three days and a storm later. They had taken a picture of her to show people in town and they were gone.  She had asked them to watch CCTV or go to the neighborhood but it fell in deaf ears… 

Very well, she would do it herself then.

She went to every single house in the block around the road where the scene had taken place. She asked every single person she had met in the area. Nobody had seen or heard anything. And she did not believe it.

Everytime she knocked on a door and someone answered, she barely had enough time to ask her question that the door was slammed shut in her face with a “ _Sorry girl, don’t know anything.”_ or a “ _Nope, wasn’t there that day.”_ said loudly with eyes moving around frenetically. 

Something wasn’t right. At all.

The police was of no help of course, nothing had changed, if not to say they were playing dead. Everytime she called it was “ _No, nothing new here. Just wait.”._

_Just wait._

That was what everybody was telling her to do.

Wait.

She was really beginning to think that they didn’t want to find her. But why?

She had even tried to reach higher authorities, drew a portrait of the woman in the car, and called journalists but the only thing she got was a five lines article at the bottom of a page and a poster on the bakery door…

It had been a week and nothing had been done and she was truly beginning to lose hope...

Until that day.

She was in her living room, feeding all the social medias accounts she had created and dedicated to Katniss’s research when the front door bell rang.

She stood up and opened the door.

“ _Primrose Everdeen?”_

“ _Yes?”_

“ _Special Agent Andreas Boggs.”_ he introduced himself showing his FBI card. “ _Can we have a talk?”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hehehe sorry!  
>  A very little ‘filler’ chapter…   
> But I am sure you’re happy to see Prim again aren’t you? ;)
> 
> No more teasing I promise, next time…  
> The arena  
> xxx


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

They were all gathered on the grass in front of the giant screen above the lake.

Effie was clutching her flute of champagne so hard it was surprising it hadn’t shattered in pieces yet.

They were all laughing, chatting, cheering, around her, making bets on who would survive the bloodbath or not while waiting for the Games to begin.

Without their masks she could recognize more of them. There were some that she had never seen before, senators, politicians, journalists, actors, businessmen… from all over the world.

They were at least twice more than the other years.

It was insane.

xxx

Katniss was waiting on her pedestal.

Her heart was racing, she could hear the blood rushing in her ears.

Her hand was on the spot on her vest where Cinna had hidden her Mockingjay pin.

_Please do your work and give me luck…_

They were in a field, empty except for the pedestals and the Cornucopia. It looked like a big mouth regurgitating tons of … things.

Haymitch’s words echoed in her head.

“ _Stay away from the Cornucopia”_

But she was facing it, some of them weren’t that far from her, she could reach them without going strictly _into_ it…

xxx

Haymitch’s eyes were fixed on the screen. On Katniss.

He had taken a glass of whiskey out of reflex but he hadn’t touched it yet.

He couldn’t move. Not until he was sure the children were safe out of the bloodbath. It was a fake forest this year, hiding would be easy.

He saw Katniss gaze going from the other Tributes to the bags displayed in front of her in the grass.

_Don’t go..._

It was a trap, a temptation to attract her into the fight.

They all wanted her to win, but he knew who wanted her to die...

xxx

Peeta was a few pedestal away from Katniss.

He had a lake behind him while she had a forest. It would be easy for her to flee and hide.

He saw her eyeing the Cornucopia, calculating her chances.

All she had to do was to run away, why couldn’t she get that?

When he caught her eye, he tried to tell her not to go, but to no avail. She was too stubborn for her own good…

So he focused on his plan.

He caught Cato’s eyes this time, and nodded to him. He nodded back.

The alliance was settled.

xxx

_May the odds be ever in your favor._

10...

9...

8...

Claudius’s voice was echoing in the silence of the Arena. Carried by the -false- wind.

7…

6…

5…

The numbers were flashing in the screen above the Cornucopia. Brighter and bigger at every new second.

4…

The voice and the beat of their hearts were mixed in their ears in a deafening endless countdown.

3…

They prepared themselves to jump into the game. Knees flexed, fists clenched, head high.

2…

They scanned one last time their surrounding, looking for the closest menace, the easiest escape.

1…

They fixed their target.

The cannon rang.

Suddenly there was no more noise.

They could only run or watch.

Watch children getting slaughtered. Watch kids turn back to their most primal instinct.

War in its purest form. No strategy, only instinct.

Kill or be killed.

xxx

Once sure that both the children were safe out of the Cornucopia, Effie and Haymitch jumped into their own game.

The Sponsors chase. It was a war of its own.

Now they would have to fight to find them, interest them, seduce them, secure them.

It was not as easy as before. Now they would have to jump on every opportunity, take advantage of each one of the children’s actions. Fight against the other Victors and Escorts. There was no more friendship, no more camaraderie, no more pity.

It was a game of who would be the fastest.

Every man for himself. Or rather for his kids.

xxx

Katniss ran into the forest as fast as she could, trying to put as much distance as possible between her and the others, all the while thanking her lucky charm for saving her from Clove’s knife.

She stopped only when she spotted water and a tree big enough to climb in. She couldn’t say for how long she had been running, an hour or two maybe but no more.

Then she took the time to look at her surroundings.

The Arena was extraordinary. It really felt like if their where outside.

Everything was real, the grass, the trees, the leaves on the ground. The watercourses and the lake had been sculpted in a very realistic manner and the edges hidden under rocks and plants.

You were in a beautiful park if you didn’t pay attention to the details.

Details like hidden cameras in the trees and rocks, or dead pixels in the screens that constituted the sky. Or the fact that the ‘sun’ was at his zenith while they had been dropped in the Arena at nine in the morning.

It was _The Truman Show,_ but better. And worst…

_Yes…_

She could do like him. Like Truman. Find the place where the earth and the sky meet.

The edge of the Arena.

xxx

_Please be safe… Please be safe…_

Peeta was walking behind the Career pack. They were laughing and bickering like children in summer camp. Relating all their kills in details again and again…

“ _Ahaha the way she screamed, she sounded like a pig!”_

“ _She looked like a pig too aha!”_

“ _And the way you slit her throat, we could have eaten her at dinner!”_

He was trying his best to tune them out but it was hard. They were loud. On purpose. They wanted to intimidate, they wanted to hunt. It was like a hunting with hounds. Scare them, make them run, exhaust them, drain them.

“ _Ah no! Please don’t kill me! Gurgurglgl...”_ He had to give her that, Clove was really good at mimicking people drowning in their own blood…

“ _Hey Loverboy!”_

He startled when he heard his new humiliating nickname in Cato’s mouth.

“ _Yeah?”_

“ _You’re sure she went this way?”_

“ _Yeah… Yes I'm sure!”_

xxx

It was madness.

They had never been so… _desired_ before. They were -well, Effie was – used to run after the Sponsors, not the other way around.

Effie had a queue in front of her. They were all horrified by Peeta’s betrayal and they wanted to save _their_ Girl on Fire. To be honest she was surprised too, but she knew him and she knew Haymitch, this must be part of a plan. But she took their money anyway of course, it wouldn’t be lost.

She finally found a moment to breath and went to take a new glass of champagne. Her throat was dry of all the talking and her mouth sore of all the smiling. She laughed when she spotted Haymitch in the crowd. He seemed very uncomfortable with all the women around him, laughing too loud, taking his arm, putting their hands anywhere on his body. She laughed fondly to see him all flustered, fighting his urge to snap their necks, but deep inside she was angry with all these… _geese._ Suddenly the Quell Victor was attractive again… after years of depreciation… it was worth their time and money again. He was a good investment.

Maybe she should go save him.

He had saved her many times…

She finished her glass, and walked toward him. She fought her way in the mob of black and navy blue cocktail dresses and tailored suits. She smiled and apologized flatly everytime she -very willingly- stomped on a foot or stuck her heel in a calf. She clutch Haymitch’s arm and gave him a meaningful look when she reached him.

“ _Haymitch, come on, we’re going to be late at our appointment!”_

There was no appointment, it was an excuse to flee without being impolite. He got her drift, apologized to his _harem_ and followed her arm in arm to the Training Center.

“ _So, lets see how the children are doing! I couldn’t even see the screen with all those people around...”_ she babbled once in the living room. She was a little embarrassed now, she didn’t want him to take this as an act of jealousy, she was just helping a friend in difficulty… And it was only true that they could barely follow the Games out there… A mentor needs to be attentive after all.

“ _Thank you sweetheart.”_ he was embarrassed too. He was rubbing his nape with one hand and looking at his feet.

“ _That was nothing,”_ she dismissed with a wave of the hand and a laugh, “ _I know what it is to be overwhelmed by suitors!”_ she added with a wink. He snorted and watched her in the eyes.

“ _Do you?”_ Was it… disappointment she saw flashing in his eyes?… She didn’t answer, she simply laughed, cleared her throat and turned the TV on.

Hopefully they had a private room on the site to watch the Games, she couldn’t imagine the state the servers were in with all those people… and if they were so numerous here she could even less imagine outside…

This year was crazy… Too much…

By the time she managed to log in and the stream on, he was already sprawled on the sofa, a bottle a whiskey in a hand. She rolled her eyes at him, but it only made him chuckled, and sat on what was left of space next to him. She could have gone to one of the armchair, she thought afterwards, but it was too late now.

They watched for a while, focusing on their Tributes, especially on Katniss. As long as he played the Career game and helped them, Peeta was safe. The girl on the other hand, she was alone and she was their prey. And the Gamemakers’…

“ _She is tired… maybe we should send her something. Food or water?”_ She was already biting her nails and they had barely begun.

“ _No.”_ he muttered.

She lifted an eyebrow asking for an explanation. They had more than enough money this year to do that. They could save it for later of course, but it wouldn’t be difficult to find more. So why not help her right now?

“ _The water is good to drink and animals good to eat this year._ _The Arena’s not the trap._ _And that’s what worries me..._ _She can manage by herself_ _for now_ _. We must help her, not make her win.”_ It wouldn’t be appreciated above us, he didn’t say but she heard all the same.

“ _Was that you? The alliance?”_

“ _No. It was Peeta’s idea. And it was a good one. They would have run after them first thing if they had teamed up together._ _And without going to the Cornucopia, without weapon, they wouldn’t have stood a chance._ _Now, he can lead them on a false track while she gets stronger, find a strategy to win.”_ he took a sip and sighed. “V _ery clever.”_

“ _And what about him?”_

“ _He wanted to protect her at all cost. There was nothing I could do about that.”_ They looked at each other, ‘ _It will be our job then’_ they said through their eyes. They were getting very good at communicating without words she noticed.

Time passed… The boy and his _friends_ had stopped for the night, and Katniss had found a shelter and water. Night was falling and the chances that something would happen now were small. It was time to go back to their Arena. They would see if something big happened, there were screens everywhere so it was safe to leave. And Effie always had her tablet with her in case they needed to send something.

They changed and headed to the outdoor screen. The weather was good and the wind was warm so people had gathered there, enjoying the summer night.

They decided to go their separate ways, they would appear more easily accessible and they could get more offers. She stayed for a few hours there, drinking, dancing, chatting. She let herself be groped, touched and kissed. She persuaded herself it was worth it.

Five offers and twice that number of drinks later, she decided it was time to call it a night and went to find Haymitch. People were retreating to the nightclubs anyway so they would miss much if they were to leave now.

She looked for him everywhere around the bar and the screen but he wasn’t there. He had left her.

She began her staggering walk to the Center alone, and then she spotted him. He was at the opposite side of the lake, at the edge of the woods, a bottle in his hand and an other at his feet. Of course, she went to him.

“ _We have to go back now, it’s late.”_

No answer.

He seemed angry. Drunk and angry. His jaw was clenched and his hand was squeezing the neck of the bottle.

He had no right to be angry. If anything _she_ should be. She was the one who had been played about, not him. He had only abandoned her.

She came closer and sat on the trunk next to him.

“ _Why did you leave?”_

She was expecting any answer but the one she got.

He jump on her. Or more precisely on her mouth. One of his hand cradled the back of her head both firmly and delicately and his mouth crashed on hers in a ferocious kiss.

It wasn’t tender, it was hungry and possessive. But she kissed back with the same intensity. They were saying many things through that kiss.

_I couldn’t bear to see you with them._

That was the main idea.

Everything felt so… familiar. The heat of his skin on hers, the taste of whiskey on his tongue, she smell of Cologne. She leaned in his embrace. His other hand was now at the small of her back, gripping her like if he was afraid she would go, but caressing her in a soothing way. Her hands were around his neck, urging him closer, gliding slowly under the collar of his shirt.

It was angry, hungry and yet so gentle and caring.

They both so drunk, on alcohol and on each other, that they didn’t even consider the risk of being seen. They didn’t think any of all this through.

At this instant, they didn’t care. They didn’t care about anything but each other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nous y voilà!!  
> Things are getting interesting here (on both sides aha)!   
> It’s not a very long chapter but many things have happened, so… I hope you’ll forgive me for this! ;)  
> Tell me all your thoughts!   
> xxx


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, hello!   
> Just a little warning for some graphic description, and hum….   
> ...Ah yes, * coconuts * ahem  
> Good reading… ;)

**Chapter 17**

They remained there for a while.

Kissing like if the rest of the world didn’t exist. Hands wandering on each other’s body, learning.

Haymitch’s hands were on her sides, going up and down, fondling, desperate to touch her skin under the fabric. He could feel the firm muscles of her thin waist underneath the dress and imagine the softness of her skin. It was make him mad. One of his hand traveled to her back to pull her closer to him while the other wandered to the still unexplored territory of her chest. He cupped gently one of her breast, his thumb stroking the erected nipples through the silk.

Her breath caught and she broke the kiss, her hand on his arm and her eyes looking down. The spell was broken.

“ _I… I can’t do this… I can’t… sorry.”_

She stood up abruptly and almost ran away from him to the Center, without even a look behind her. She left him there, with his now too tight pants and his slow clouded brain trying to understand what had happened. She didn’t seem uncomfortable before, quite the opposite, what had he done?

He took a moment to calm down every part of him. Then he stood and followed her to the Center. By the time he arrived she was already changed, and was watching the Games while tapping on her tablet. He cleared his throat to signal his presence and she turned to him with a fake smile that did nothing to hide her embarrassment. He could see the blush, hidden on her face by the heavy layer of makeup, on the cleavage left bare by her sweater.

She was in her relaxed outfit, silky pants with cashmere prints floating around her legs, a white oversize sweater and her hair gathered in a practical ponytail high on her head. Somehow she was even sexier like that than in her short dresses and high heels. He was dying to touch her again, to feel her skin under his tongue, her tongue on his…

“ _The kids are safe for now, nothing will happened tonight. Good night Haymitch.”_ Seeing her standing and leaving made him realize he had been staring for a while, his brain took a moment to process her words. 

“ ’ _Night sweetheart.”_

He  went to his room too, snatching a bottle on the way. 

xxx

Neither of them talked about the night’s _incident_ in the morning. They both knew better. Kissing and making out in the dead of the night completely drunk was one thing, acknowledging it while sober was another. Especially indoors.

They went through their day like if nothing had happened, finding sponsors, watching their kids progress in the Arena…

They were taking a break from the craziness in the Penthouse late in the afternoon the next day when Haymitch finally understood.

“ _Shit...”_ He muttered, his eyes on the screen where Katniss, who had been walking in a straight line for hours now, was finally taking a break.

“ _Language.”_ Effie chided him absentmindedly, her eyes on the papers they had collected that day. “ _And what was that for?”_

“ _The girl.”_ Her head shot toward him and then to the screen. “ _She is trying to find the edge of the Arena.”_

“ _What? Why?”_

“ _I don’t know...”_

“ _Is it really a bad thing?_ _Isn’t that what you did?”_ He scoffed, but she really looked puzzled. She truly didn’t know.

“ _We need to stop her. Find something...”_ He took her tablet to look at their money and the things they could afford. He didn’t really care about what to send her, what he needed was the message.

“ _I don’t understand Haymitch,_ _why...”_

“ _Because! That’s all. Gonna have to be enough._ _Now will you help me_ _or wha_ _t_ _?_ _”_ He snapped. He was angry because he was worried, and she was the only one here he could discharge his anger on. It was unfair he knew but for now he couldn’t help it. She didn’t push further and they sat on the couch, trying to find something to send her they would not waste too much money on.

If proof was needed that the Penthouse was bugged... They had not been arguing for ten minutes that they heard Caesar’s excited screams that meant something important was happening.

“ _Oh! The Gamemakers seem to have taken the whole Girl on fire thing very seriously ah ah!_ _ah_ _”_

Both their heads snapped to the screen. Katniss was fumbling with her rope to free herself from her branch. The trees around her were on fire.

She finally fell to the ground, took her bag and began running away from the fire. She went left and a tree fell in front of her, blocking out the path. She turned around but they wanted her to go back toward the center of the Arena. The fire circled her, giving her only one way out.

She ran and ran for what appeared like an eternity. Their eyes were so glued to the screen that they didn’t even realize that their bodies were glued to each other, Effie clutching his forearm with all the strength she had.

Then she fell, just next to one of the flamethrower, her leg was just on it. She screamed and rolled when it blew his fire on her, burning a good portion of her leg, but she got up and resumed her escape.

She ran until she found the river leading to the lake and she jumped in it. Thinking herself safe.

Haymitch didn’t believe that the Career pack and Peeta coming this way too was only the odd _not_ being in her favor…

She was in the water, sighing in relief, enjoying the feeling ig the cold water on her burned skin, when they ran toward her screaming in joy. She jump on the shore and climb to a big tree. She was safe from them for now thanks to Peeta’s intervention, but they needed to help her. The burn on her leg was bad. Really bad.

This settled their argument about what to send her. The burn salve was expensive, almost a third of the budget, but they didn’t have the choice. He scribbled his message on the tablet before sending the package.

_Apply generously and stay alive_

The salve arrive ten minutes later in the Arena, the Careers and Peeta were asleep, so they allowed themselves a break. It was too late to go Sponsor hunting anyway. They fell as one on the couch, their shoulders brushing against each other.

They stayed like that for a while, moving only to pass and drink the bottle of whiskey Haymitch had left on the table until it was empty. They were pleasantly tipsy.

Effie’s head fell on the headrest of the couch, eyes closed, exposing her neck to Haymitch hungry gaze. He wanted to kiss it, bite it, lick the perfume from her skin, taste her on his tongue… _God,_ alcohol and fear were already clouding his brain but now he could add lust to the list. The sleeve of her emerald green dress slipped and left her shoulder bare…

He couldn’t help it, he couldn’t stop himself, he kissed it. Slowly, with soft, teasing, open mouth kisses. Her breath quickened but she didn’t stop him either, so he moved up to her neck. He kissed and licked in turn, tasting her skin, her perfume, and her perspiration. Her hands came to take his head and brought him to her lips and into a breathtaking kiss. Again, they kissed for a long time, he was already hard just from that and he was pretty sure she could feel it against her thigh. His hands were on her dress trying to find a zipper, when she broke the kiss, panting and clawing at his scalp and nape.

“ _I can’t do that Haymitch, It’s not right...”_

He stopped and looked into her eyes. All he could see was lust. _“Do you want it?”_

“ _Yes. Yes, but...I shouldn’t...”_

“ _Aren’t you the one who said repeatedly you were ‘an independent woman who could do whatever she wanted,_ _no matter the dictates of society’?”_ How he remembered that he didn’t know, he didn’t know he had paid attention to her rants all these years. He was surprised himself to be capable of such a sentence in those circumstances.

“ _Wha.. what? Yes but...”_ He kissed her silent. He didn’t know what was troubling her like that but he didn’t care. He wanted her and she wanted him, he didn’t need more than that.

He cupped one of her breast, pinching her nipple through the fabric and this time she didn’t stop him. Instead she moaned and that moan drove him crazy. It was mad to do this inside the Penthouse, in the living room, but he didn’t give a shit. He had stopped thinking straight a while ago. And she had too apparently.

Her hands had done a quick job of the buttons of his shirt and she was pushing it down his shoulder. It wasn’t easy with their mouths glued together and their tongues fighting but she managed to push it off him. He took over and got rid of her dress, no time for zippers, he caught the front with both hands and torn it. She gasped and looked at the mess for a second before jumping hungrily on his mouth again. Their hands explored, touching, scratching and groping in turn.

He finally detached his mouth from hers to travel to her breasts. They were small and firm so she didn’t even need to wear a bra. She was naked in front of him with only a see through pair of lace panties. God he never wanted to forget that sight, ever. He licked and sucked at her nipples, the ministrations made her moan and sigh and he could feel the vibrations through her bones.

“ _Oh my God, yes Haymitch.”_ she sighed as her trembling hands were fighting with the buckle of his belt. He took pity on her and took his remaining clothes off.

“ _Fuck...”_ he growled against her skin when her warm hand wrapped around his shaft and began stroking him.

He ripped her panties off her and threw them to the other side of the room. He put his hand on her c ore to touch her but she was already soaking wet. He groaned at the feel of her warm wetness slipping through his fingers. His head was turning a little, but he couldn’t say if it was from alcohol or from her. 

He lied her on the length of the sofa and positioned himself at her entrance, rubbing his hardness on her  labia  a few times,  sucking and biting her earlobe , teasing her. 

“ _ Please Haymitch...”  _ she panted, her hands gripping  his shoulder blades  trying to drag him closer. 

He entered her in one push, she was so warm and wet… He stayed with his full length inside her, watching her eyes rolling to the back of her skull with a cry of bliss.  He captured her gaping mouth in a dirty kiss and began moving. It was frantic and fast, everything but tender. She was screaming and moaning and he tried to muffle her screams with his mouth but to no avail.  She came apart under under him, her muscles squeezing him inside her. He came with her, grunting in her shoulder,  crushing her under him . 

T hey remained like that, panting, for a minute, then Haymitch realized what had just happened and the possible consequences fell on him. The thought sobered him up immediately and he flew to his room, not bothering to take his clothes on the way. 

xxx

Peeta couldn’t sleep, under that tree where Katniss was hidden.

He couldn’t stop thinking about their last conversation, the night before the Games.

“ _I don’t want to be another pawn in their game.”_ He had said to her. And look at him now. Befriending the Career and chasing her like an animal.

She must hate him so much now, persuaded that he had betrayed her, lied to her.

He smiled when he heard the tinkling of the parachute and Katniss moving to grab it above him.

It reminded him that he wasn’t alone in his mission.

“ _I cannot afford to think like that.”_ she had said. “ _I have my sister.”_

And she was going to go back to her, he had promised himself to help her. Even if he had to pay that with his life.

He would save her no matter the cost. Even if it meant her hating him.

He drifted off all night but never succumbed to slumber, so the noise coming from above caught his attention and woke him up completely. It sounded like someone sawing wood but it was laborious.

Whatever Katniss had found to trap them, he was ready to jump and ran away.

He barely had time to react when the nest exploded on the ground and the swarm of wasps flew on them. Yet he was the first to flee and the insects focused on the Careers still numb from sleep.

He ran as far as he could and then remembered Katniss. He turned back to see if she had managed to run away and if the Careers had followed her.

He found her first, staggering with her eyes glassy and her pupils dilated. She was walking in a daze, like a zombie, her eyes in the void.

“ _Katniss! Katniss! Run! What are you doing? Run!”_ He had to shake her by the shoulders to get her to watch him. Even then it was like if she was watching _through_ him, she didn’t seem to recognize him. She must have been stung by the wasps, they were genetically modified to be even more poisonous. She looked at him for a while, with a completely lost expression on her face. And then she rushed, shoving him out of her way.

She was still staggering a little, but at least she was running. And he could see the bow and arrows on her back.

He continued walking to the camp they had made under the tree. Cato and Clove had run away, leaving a few things behind. He took the knives and the sleeping bag. It might be useful later.

When he turned around to get away, he saw her, Glimmer. Dead, her face on the ground.

She had been the only victim of the deadly insects. Her skin oscillated between white and purple, and she was blistered from the stings. Each sting was visible, there were at least a hundred, and they were suppurating a yellowish liquid. Her face and her hands had taken the most of it, they were so swelled that he could barely recognize her. The sight was disgusting, but he felt sorry for her.

She might have been a Career, she had still been an innocent girl.

And she died a horrible, disgusting, painful, humiliating death.

He sighed and ran to the direction Katniss had taken.

He had to find her now. Cato and Clove weren’t going to wait for him, and even if he found them he wasn’t sure the welcome would be warm. As for Marvel, he had decided from the beginning to go by himself.

So he was alone here now.

She would never be alone.

But he was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well… I caved, I wrote smut…drunk comfort smut... hope you enjoyed it!   
> As usual, give me your thoughts and guessing for the story! I’m not sure about Peeta, I’m afraid he is OOC. Please tell me what you think!   
> (I am a little tired today so please forgive errors if you find some, my brain doesn't want to cooperate anymore...)  
> xxx


	18. chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

They both agreed wordlessly not to talk about what had happened the previous night. They had drunkenly succumbed to a primal need, that was all.

Nothing else.

Nothing more.

Effie was mortified. She had never done that… It wasn’t like with the Sponsors. It hadn’t been for work, it had been for pleasure. She had wanted it so badly.

She couldn’t be mad at Haymitch for running away. She knew that it was implicitly forbidden for Escorts and Victors to be somehow involved with one another. And she knew he would not be the kind of man to hold her and cuddle all night. She wasn’t expecting feeling on his part or anything like that either, she wasn’t that stupid. Yet she was a little vexed by his sudden disappearance. But she wasn’t going to confront him on that subject now.

She -they - had other problems for now. Katniss was still unconscious and had found an unexpected ally in Eleven’s Tribute Rue, and Peeta was still running and hiding from the remaining Careers.

They began working separately, and she worked at all hours, day or night, to avoid crossing Haymitch’s path. She wasn’t sure she could look at him in the eyes again. But that didn’t stop her from looking at something else though… Now that she knew what was hidden underneath the clothes, she was really enjoying the view of his backside…

Despite all her attempts at avoiding him, they ended up together in the Penthouse one evening. She had just come back to change before heading to the clubs. He was sprawled on the armchair watching the Games. They were following Cato and Clove’s conquest of the Cornucopia. They hadn’t found Peeta yet and Katniss was still dead to the world and under Rue’s close supervision.

“ _I’m quite worried for the Girl. Are you certain there is nothing we could do?”_ she asked him. He was adamant there was nothing that could help her with the venom, that it was too late and they just needed to wait until it fades.

“ _Yes. At least while she sleeps she doesn’t do anything stupid.”_ he spat.

He was referring to the finding-the-edge-of-the-arena _stupid_ thing. She couldn’t understand why it was a stupid idea. He had done that, he had won like that. Why was he so afraid that Katniss would do the same? It was only natural for mentor to share their experience with their Tributes and for Tributes to make use of it.

Once in the club, she spotted a bunch of Sponsors on the dance floor who were going to be easy preys. They were new and quite young, she could easily work her magic on them.

Before that she needed a drink. She sat at the bar and bought a glass of tequila. A few feet away she saw Chaff in deep conversation with Johanna and Camille.

It was funny to see the young Victor with them. They were the two only persons, maybe with Haymitch too, that she truly respected. Chaff because he was much older and experienced, and because he had been clear since the beginning he would not play her little passive aggressive game. And Camille because she had been her Mentor, she had made her win. And she had clearly given her a page of her book. Maybe Johanna had pushed the innocent act a little too far though. Her act had made a lot of noise in the high spheres of the Organization.

They seemed to be having a deadly serious conversation. Their faces were closed. Johanna appeared to be sulking, her arms crossed on her chest and her jaw clenched, and the two others were almost hissing at each other. Chaff was waving his stump left and right and Camille was chuckling disdainfully and rolling her eyes.

They were all known for having sharp tongues, and they were Victors, a fight would be explosive. At best.

She finished her glass and jumped on the dance floor.

Like she had thought, they were easy preys. A sway of the hips, a hand on her ass and her tongue down their throats and she had won. Four offers in less than an hour. Small offers, yes, but she neglected nothing.

She got back to the bar, in need of an other glass to wash the self disgust from her mouth.

She realized too late she was sitting next to Chaff, who was now nursing his whiskey alone. The girls were still at their table, and Camille seemed to be lecturing Jo.

She hesitated. They did not really like each other, but maybe he could answer her question. Maybe he would know what had bothered Haymitch so much yesterday. He was Haymitch’s best friend after all.

She was gathering all her courage to engage the conversation, but he spoke first.

“ _How’s your girl on fire love?”_ he asked her with a smirk.

“ _Well, not too bad for now, thanks to your girl.”_ It was true, if it weren’t for Rue, Katniss would be long gone by now. “ _The leg is still ugly though...”_ she tried to bring indirectly the subject she was interested in. Maybe he would speak more if it was his idea…

“ _Yeah. Quite a u-turn...”_ he chuckled. “ _They don’t really like the lone explorer style.”_

“ _What do you mean?”_

“ _Nothing.”_

She was really growing annoyed by all their secrecy. And her quite drunken state didn’t help her to contain her anger.

“ _Come on, what’s the big deal? What is_ _it_ _with the edge of the Arena?”_ It came out without her thinking of it. There were peoples around and she bit her tongue in regret, but no one seemed to have heard her. The music was loud, and she wasn’t the most intoxicated.

Chaff however frowned and clicked his tongue before stepping off his stool. He came closer to her, facing the crowd behind her, leaned toward her and put his remaining hand on her thigh. It wasn’t meant to grope her though, it was more of a meaningful move, almost comforting.

“ _We all_ _had to pay for_ _our_ _mistake, love.”_ he whispered as close as he could from her ear.

She didn’t have time to turn her head that he was already gone.

She knew the Victor’s private lives were kept classified – she was afraid to know why - and that she should not ask about it, but now a thousand new questions were spinning in her head. _What had Haymitch done,_ _d_ _id he pay for using the Arena as a weapon?_

_What had happened to him?_

_Why hadn’t he ever mentioned it before?_

_How little did she really know him?_

Then she remembered Chaff’s attitude and his choice of words. For the first time since she had known him, he had been, if not _nice,_ quite _civil_ with her. The almost comforting hand on her leg, the fact that he hadn’t screamed at her or treated her an _Escort_ -as it has always been an insult in his mouth-, and the pronoun “ _We all”…_

_He knew…_

_But what exactly did he know? And how?_

She was dizzy again, fear and anguish were making her head ache and her stomach churn. She was about to ask for a new glass when her eyes met Enobaria’s. She was watching her with a mean smirk showing her sharp teeth.

She stood up to confront her but a strong hand on her arm held her back.

“ _Come on sweetheart, I need you now!”_

xxx

Katniss woke up from her half-coma.

She was lying against a rock, hidden by a curtain of ivy. She had a cold damp cloth on her forehead and her hands and neck were sticky with some kind of salve.

_Where was she? What was she doing here? Who had taken care of her?_

She sat slowly, she was still feeling dizzy, both from the venom and the lack of food. She realized that she didn’t even knew for how long she had been unconscious. A night? A day? More?

She heard the rusting of dead leaves not far from her on her right. She stood up and took her weapons just in case, but she knew who was spying on her.

“ _Rue?”_ That was her name right? “ _Rue, come here. I’m not gonna hurt you.”_

The young girl stepped aside from behind a tree. She was so thin and her dark skin was stained with blood and dirt, but her eyes were sparkling with mischief and kindness. She was so young…

“ _Are you the one who help me?”_ she nodded. “ _Thank you.”_ They smiled at each other.

They settled around the small fire Katniss had made and ate their feast of roasted squirrel -hunted by Katniss -and blackberries -collected by Rue.

“ _How long have I been here?”_

“ _About three days.”_

Katniss’s blood stopped in her veins. “ _Peeta?”_ she whispered, unable to do better with the huge lump that had appeared in her throat.

“ _He is still alive.”_ Rue smiled. “ _Is it true?”_

“ _What?”_ Katniss frowned and Rue rolled her eyes.

“ _You and him?”_

_We can sell the star-crossed lovers… That might get you Sponsors._ Haymitch’s word rang in her head. Was that still a plan? After what Peeta had done… betraying her… Maybe she could use it. Act on the  _love is blind_ thing,  make them believe she was so madly in love with him that she couldn’t believe he would do that to her. That he had been playing a role. 

She would have to explain him when… _if_ she finds him. 

“ _Yes.”_ she tried to chuckle fondly like stupid teenage girls do when they’re in love, but Effie was right, even her could feel it. She really was a terrible actress… 

xxx

Peeta was hidden in a little cave under the roots of a tree. He had managed to lose Cato and Clove by the river, but he could tell they were still on his tracks. 

He knew he should move now, while he still could. His leg was badly injured, the cut was neat but deep and he had lost a lot of blood. Soon it would get infected and he would not be able to move at all. 

For now, the flesh wound wasn’t too painful, the nerves had been cut clean and the adrenaline was still active in his brain. 

The moral pain, however… He had lost. He was a dead man. He had failed his mission. 

He hadn’t been able to find or help Katniss and now he would not be able to do it anymore. And he knew Haymitch and Effie would focus on her, he had asked them to.

A part of him wanted to see her one last time, but he knew her. If she found him, she would want to help him and he would be a burden. He didn’t want to risk her life for his. 

Night was falling. Soon he heard the anthem playing and the faces of the dead Tributes  appeared  on the screens that made the sky.  No one he knew. Not Katniss. 

His eyelids where heavy but he tried to stay awake, fighting the pain, the hunger and the fever. He couldn’t hear any noise around him, except the wind in the leaves and the occasion cracking if the wood. 

After a while, exhaustion won over his determination and he fell asleep, lulled by the melody of the wind and the nightingales. 

He awoke in the morning to the clinging sound of a parachute falling not far from him.  He crawled to it. It was only a few feet away but he could really feel the throbbing pain in his leg and he could barely move it. Those few feet felt like a hundred.

Finally he caught it and opened it. 

Inside was a little white folded box. It looked like… a bakery package? 

He took it and opened it. He was right. It was a box from the fancy french  _patisserie_ in the Capitol town. He had only seen it once when they had gone to their interviews, and he had been amazed by the marvelous cakes he had seen inside. 

He had one of them in his hands right now. It was a  _trompe-l’oeil,_ a cake painted to look like a small grey pebble with green moss around it.  With was a little note with only two words he had heard more in the last week than in all his life before. He chuckled when he read them. 

_Stay alive._

_H_

xxx

There was nothing they could do.

The salves and the antibiotics were too expensive for now. They could barely afford it and it was too big a risk to take. The Careers were still on his feet and they couldn’t buy something that would be lost in a day when they would find him.

Yet they had to find a way to help him. Them. There must have been something to do.

“ _What happened?”_ Effie asked him for the hundredth time, like if it would change anything…

“ _Their paths crossed, Cato hurt him, he stunned him by shoving him against a tree, Clove ran after him, she stopped when she couldn’t see him anymore because she didn’t want to go too far from their camp. Now there we are, so can we focus on the problem at hand now?”_ He explained as fast as he could while literally punching her tablet in search of something to send him.

He already had enough water, and he wasn’t too far from the stream. Medicines or tools were out of the question, they were either too expensive or to cumbersome. If he had to flee, better to have only his own weight to carry. Food was the only option they could consider, but it wouldn’t be of great help in the long run.

Effie was strangely silent – for Effie that is- so he risked a glance in his direction. She was looking at him with her eyebrows furrowed and her arms crossed. The gesture made her breast showing even more in the cleavage of her dress and he really didn’t need the distraction right now.

“ _What?”_

“ _I would appreciate that you didn’t break my working tools.”_ she said snatching the tablet from his hands. Then she locked her eyes in his with _a look._ “ _I’m going for a cigarette.”_ and she headed to the roof of the Penthouse. 

H e followed her of course.  She was waiting for him with a cigarette between her lips. It was strangely attractive. 

“ _Do you remember our plan Haymitch?”_

“ _Of course I do. But I struggle to see a love story here right now sweetheart.”_

“ _Leave it to me!”_ she shook her head and outstretched her hands. _“Just, tell the boy to resist a little longer, make him wait for her. Try to give him hope. Something.” _

“ _What are you gonna do?”_ He frowned, not happy at the perspective of her being manhandled by crazy men -and women – again. 

“I… _I’m going to see Seneca.”_

“ _Crane? The head Gamemaker? Didn’t know you were on a first name basis with Snow’s second in command.”_ he snorted. He wasn’t jealous, he just didn’t like that she was close to such a high member of the Organization. _“ You’re not supposed to go to him, that’s not your job.” _

“ _Yes, there are higher chances that he’ll listen to me than to you.”_ She answered calmly. 

“ _Yeah, and why is that? He has a kink for redhead?”_

“ _No! What..? God no! Don’t be stupid!...”_ She sighed with her head in her hand. “ _He is… We are… We were adopted by the same family. We were raised together. We’re as good as brother and sister.”_

He didn’t know what to say to that. She had never mentioned that before. It wasn’t a small detail. 

“ _Never cared to tell me?”_

“ _I didn’t think it was relevant until now.”_ He gave her that point. He wouldn’t have been a great help to their other Tributes. “ _And it’s not like we ever talked about our families before. Or talked at all even.”_

“ _There is not much to talk about on my side.”_ he muttered for himself in a very low voice. _“Yours appears to be a real soap opera, I can’t wait to learn more!”_ He deadpanned. She did not react. Or at least she didn’t say anything. He wasn’t looking at her. He was looking at the mountains, thinking about his return to his house, burnt by a “gas explosion”, about his girlfriend “car accident”… 

“ _So we agree then? You take care of the boy and you let me handle the rest?”_ She asked softly right behind him. Putting a light hand on his shoulder. She wasn’t dumb, she had heard him. He shrugged it off and went to the roof door. 

“ _Yeah. Yeah you do that.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To be very honest, I’m not perfectly satisfied by this chapter. So please tell me if you liked it, tell me everything!   
> I am not sure I will continue to update so often, there are many things going on in my life. I love writing but it takes a lot of time and it gets harder and harder to find… But I promise I won’t leave this story unfinished, there are too many things I want to tell you to do that, don’t worry!   
> Anyway, give me your feedback as always, that’s what motivates me the most, you can’t imagine how glad I am that you like this story! I had never thought I would get so much support on this crazy idea!  
> xxx


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a very small chapter, but I promise big things is coming! I hope you’ll enjoy it!

**Chapter 19**

The forest had been calm all morning.

The wind was soft and warm, the bird were chirping cheerfully. The sky only disturbed by a cloud of white smoke a few minutes earlier.

No scream, no cry, no canon.

That is why the sudden explosion coming from the Cornucopia had been so surprising.

But it was a good sign.

It meant that Katniss had succeeded. She had destroyed the Careers camp and their supplies.

Now it was her turn to finish her part of the plan.

She began running to the next pile of wood she had to burn. She had been running for less than a minute when she heard a little _crac_ and felt her feet being caught by something. 

A second later she was trapped under a heavy net made of metallic ropes.

What could she do?

She didn’t have much more than two choices, waiting for either Katniss or the person who had set the trap, or scream for Katniss, hoping that she would be the first to hear her.

She chose that option. Katniss would have seen than the second fire wasn’t lit, she would come to see what’s wrong. She was certainly already on her way.

“ _Katniss! Katniss!”_

She heard footsteps coming closer, running toward her.

“ _Rue?”_

“ _Katniss_ _help me_ _!”_

She arrived, sweaty and in panic. She immediately knelt next to her and began working on the metallic net.

They were both breathing fast and heavily, in a total panic. Katniss’s movements were jerky because of her shaking hands, but she managed to free her from the net.

They fell in each other arms. It might have appeared completely disproportionate considering that they have known each other for barely two days, but they didn’t care.

Then she saw the boy from One, Marvel, coming from behind a tree. She push Katniss away, she didn’t even had the time to scream that she already had  s hot an arrow through his heart.  She lowered her head to see his spear in her stomach. Right between her ribs. 

S he could feel that it was too late. The pain was already receding. She barely felt that she had fell to the ground and that Katniss had cradled her on her lap. 

She was dead. She could feel herself going.

“ _Did you destroy everything?”_ she whispered

“ _Yes.”_ Katniss answered in a shaky voice. She was holding back her tears.

“ _Good.”_ Her voice was barely a whisper. Talking was getting harder with every second. She couldn’t feel anything. Her strength was quickly leaving her, her breathing was shallow and crackling. “You… _You have to win.”_

She didn’t answer, she just sniffed and held back a sob.

“ _Can you sing?”_ She asked as a last request.

Her mother used to sing to her for bedtime. She always had a new lullaby every night.

Katniss nodded and took a deep shaky breath.

_Deep in the meadow_

_Under the willow_

Her eyes were fixed on the sky. With the light branches and leaves of the trees flying with wind, and the small numeric clouds moving imperceptibly.

_A bed of grass_

_A soft green pillow_

Her nose was full of the scents of the forest, grass, dirt, humidity mixed with the wild white flowers surrounding them.

_Lay down your head_

_And close your eyes_

She could feel Katniss petting her hair softly.

She felt a tear falling and rolling on her forehead.

And everything went white.

xxx

The pub was silent.

Deadly silent.

Everything was still.

Time had stopped.

With Rue’s heart.

Everybody had their eyes riveted to the big screen in the back of the room.

Nobody moved. Glasses had stilled halfway to their owners mouth, cards were forgotten on the tables, smiles had disappeared from every face, eyes were wide and glassy.

Effie was gaping to the screen, swallowing back the tears that had briefly appeared in her eyes. Haymitch was petrified on his bar stool, clutching his glass like if his life depended on it. Camille’s face was a blank mask but her eyes were watery with sadness and anger. Only Jo was… smiling. Well it was a “ _Jo smile”,_ a mix of a smirk, a gasp and a smile.

He was… empty. He had watched this surreal scene and he couldn’t say anything. His brain wouldn’t compute.

He had never seen that before.

What she had done… It was unprecedented. And bad, really bad. And so extraordinary.

His heart was filled with sadness for his girl, even if had no illusion on her chance of winning from the beginning, but also with pride. Pride for a girl that wasn’t his own, but who he could feel was going to be theirs.

She wasn’t his, but he would help just like if she was.

He turned his head to look at his surroundings. People were talking again, whispering to their neighbors with either horrified or admiring expressions on their stupid faces.

Haymitch had turned back toward the counter and his gaze was lost in the bottom of his glass.

His eyes crossed Camille’s. She was looking at him with a pleading look, asking his permission.

He nodded discretely and she got out of the pub, almost running, with a determined expression on her face.

She had been right. From the beginning.

She always had been, in retrospect.

He stood up and headed to the Center. Haymitch shot him an interrogatory look but he didn’t answer him. His head was elsewhere.

He had kept enough money for one gift to each of his Tributes. Now, Rue’s was Katniss’s.

He sent her the piece of bread. Without note. She would understand.

The bread was covered with sesame seed except for a “11” in the middle of it.

Then he send the other piece of bread to Thresh. This time with a note.

_Not Twelve._

_For Rue._

_C_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nope… nope, I’m not sad. I swear this is just an eyelash in my eye, nothing else….   
> Anyway! What do you think those two are up to?   
> Give me your theories! xxx


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay. I can hardly believe this is chapter 20 already…. I have never written so much…  
> Thank you so much for being still there to support me and this crazy story!!
> 
> (I’m sorry if there are mistakes here, my brain is too tired to read another time)

**Chapter 20.**

“ _Please, Seneca! You have to listen to me! This could be...”_

“ _Eff’!”_ He lifted a hand in front of her. “ _You know I love you, but really, I won’t talk business with you.”_

She took his hand to prevent him from leaving her. He was taller than her, with black hair and a perfectly trimmed black beard. He could be intimidating but his blue eyes were kind when he turned to look at her.

“ _Please, think about it. They know each other, their families know each other, they live in the same town and he truly loves her._ _And there is her sister too._ _If both of them do not come back, it will be really hard to keep the secret.”_ She was basically begging him and she hated that. “ _Please Seneca, give them a chance, even the Sponsors are talking about it, they call them Romeo and Juliette, they want the love story. It’s new, it brings interest.”_ He sighed but she held his hand tighter, squeezing her between hers. “ _I am not asking you make them win, just… let them play the Game together.”_

“ _I could just kill them both right now. It would solve the problem.”_ He stated coldly, shrugging with a pout.

“ _Yes, but I know you, you wont.”_ She gave him her best pleading look, the very one she used when they were younger when she needed him to cover her when she sneaked out to go to the club on Saturday nights.

“ _I’ll…_ _I’ll consider it. I need to talk to...”_ He stopped in the middle of his sentence and walked past her. Her eyes followed him, he was talking to one of Snow’s assistants. There was an Avox beside him, holding a phone to Seneca. She stretched her neck but she couldn’t see what was on the screen.

They talked for a while, whispering in a grave tone.

When he came back, Seneca was white as a sheet.

“ _I think you should go Effie.”_ he told her flatly. He wouldn’t meet her eyes.

“ _What? Why? What happened?”_ She was worried now. He was not easily shaken. That was one of the reasons why he had been named Head Gamemaker so young.

“ _I…_ _I can’t tell you. I don’t even know what happened.”_

 _S_ he stayed on her spot, arms crossed and eyebrows lifted. He sighed and rubbed his eyes.

“ _Alright…_ _But you have to promise me you won’t say anything until everything is under control.”_ she nodded. “ _A picture of Rue leaked. Maybe even a video. We… we don’t know how much it has spread yet.”_

“ _A picture of… of...”_ she was stammering. This was terrible, this was a disaster. If it reached her parents... The consequences…

“ _Her body, yes. And a video of Katniss singing and… the flowers...”_ He suddenly sounded exhausted. “ _Please, Eff’, I need space right now.”_

“ _Yes. Yes of course.”_ She shook her head and headed back to the Penthouse. She walked in a daze.

How could that have happened? They were always so careful, this was their worst nightmare. It shouldn’t even be possible with all the security systems…

And what would happen to them? Even if they were arrested and tried properly, they would end up in a cell for the rest of their life. A prison for another…

She reached the Penthouse automatically, only stopping her walk once in the living room, facing Haymitch.

“ _So? How did it go?”_

She shook her head and came back to the present moment. Haymitch was watching her, waiting for an answer. She realized that she had been silent for a while, lost in her unpleasant train of thoughts.

“ _Oh! He said he’s going to consider it. That’s already a good start.”_ she answered with a smile that didn’t seem to convince him. “ _And you? You are back already? I thought you wanted to see Chaff?”_

“ _Yeah. I was with him at the bar but…”_ he made a vague gesture with his hand and stopped talking, returning to his watching of the Games were Peeta was still hiding under a very clever camouflage – Haymitch’s advice from what she had gathered.

“ _But what? What happened?”_ She was growing worried now, knowing what _had_ happened.

He sighed. “ _Some… Officials came to take him to Crane. To talk about Rue I think. I don’t know.”_

“ _Oh...”_ She had taken to much time to answer _._ _S_ he tried to sound detached. “ _Nothing bad I hope?”_ But she failed.

He looked at her in a way that showed her he wasn’t fooled. She couldn’t act properly in front of him anymore and that was really frustrating. It was like she had given the last keys to read through her act in the same time as she had given him herself.

“ _I don’t know. Didn’t see him yet.”_ he said while searching in her bag and waving her cigarettes with a shake of the head in direction of the roof door. “ _Can I borrow you one?”_

“ _Oh, yes please help yourself. I’ll take one too.”_

They headed to the roof in silence. She wasn’t proud of herself, she had sworn to Seneca to say anything… But it didn’t really count to tell Haymitch right? By her or Chaff he would have been told anyway…

Once there _she_ did light a cigarette. She needed it.

“ _What do you know?”_ He did not beat around the bush. 

She sighed and took a deep drag on her cigarette. “ _First, promise me you’ll keep this to yourself. I am not even supposed to know. I just happened to be there when Seneca was told.”_

He simply nodded with his right hand in front of his heart. She didn’t argue to know if he was mocking her or not. They didn’t have much time, they would soon need to go back to the children. Instead she took a deep breath and her time to chose her words.

“ _A picture of Rue’s body after Katniss’s… intervention has leaked. For now they don’t know how bad it is and they are trying to contain it.”_ She tried a glance at him but he wasn’t looking at her. He was watching the horizon with his hands on his head. She hesitated to add this part but better to say everything now that she had begun. “ _They aren’t sure but there might be a video as well. Katniss singing and… decorating.”_ She wasn’t sure of the word but she couldn’t find anything better.

They remained here for a few in silence. Until she couldn’t bear it anymore. She needed to know what he thought about this because she couldn’t make her own mind.

“ _So? What do you think?”_

His hands flopped to his sides as he turned and walked toward her.

“ _Honestly sweetheart, I can’t decide if that’s a disaster or a stroke of genius.”_ he chuckled nervously.

“ _And for us? What does it mean for us?”_ she asked waving her arms in the air. “ _It’s going to be terrible isn’t it?”_ she barely whispered that part. There would be consequences for Katniss it was sure… Maybe even for Peeta too. She could feel tears coming in her eyes.

Haymitch took a moment before answering.

“ _Maybe not. If the news spread, they’ll need something to distract the audience”_ He was looking away again, thoughtful. She had rarely seen him like this, but it was more and more often this year. She liked that, seeing him implicated. It reminded her of the clever young Quell Victor she had admired when she was at the Escort “school”.

“ _Like…_ _a young love story?”_

“ _Yes… young love…_ _That could work in our favor. For once..._ _”_

“ _So, for now, we just wait?”_ She asked uncertainly.

“ _Yes. We wait until the news spread, but not too much. I’ll go to see Seneca myself. We’ll need to play it clever sweetheart.”_

They did not need to wait for too long.

The moment they entered the pub a few hours later for their daily Sponsor chase, every conversation stopped and eyes were either fixed on them or looking away. They acted like if they didn’t know what was happening and headed to the bar.

Chaff was sitting on the stool, alone, turning his glass on the counter with his good hand.

“ _Hey! What’s going on?”_ Haymitch asked trying to sound genuine but Chaff wasn’t fooled. He looked at him and chuckled.

“ _Don’t worry buddy, they contained it. They suppressed it before it reached to “normal” web. Mostly it stayed within the Organization circle, outside of it they’ll say it’s only an ARG.”_ he stopped talking but let a deep sigh escape his mouth. “ _It did reach her family though. The video was send to them directly.”_ He said that in a very low voice so she guessed that it was a piece of information that was privy to him and the high spheres only.

Effie’s blood turned cold. And if the look on his face was to be trusted, so did Haymitch’s.

“ _What…_ _What did they do about it?”_ she asked in a trembling voice betraying her worry. They were capable of anything…

“ _They sent a team to make sure they wouldn’t talk. A lot of money involved I guess. They won’t risk killing them don’t worry love. It wouldn’t be really discrete. They are already on the news for the disappearance. They will give her body back and they will be under close surveillance for the rest of their life.”_

She sighed in relief and he went back to glaring at his soon to be empty glass. Thinking like her about this family destroyed beyond repair by them. In a way…

Haymitch was deep in his thoughts. Certainly organizing his arguments before going to Seneca.

They stayed there, silent, for a while. Until Chaff stood up, muttering for them only.

“ _At least she’s gone with dignity.”_ he patted Haymitch’s shoulder and walked out the pub.

Haymitch waited a few minutes before telling her he was going to see Seneca. Leaving her alone to deal with the Sponsors. He downed his glass - _Dutch courage –_ and left.

xxx

Later, after an afternoon of unsuccessful Sponsor chase because of the stunt Katniss had pulled and the dreadful state Peeta was in, she came back to find the Penthouse empty and strangely quiet. Cinna and Portia were not there often but Haymitch didn’t have that many other places to be. It was weird because he should have been back by now, Seneca would not have kept him in his office for three hours. He was certainly drinking somewhere...

She took her place in the living room, tensed because she could feel something was not right, and turned the TV on.

She barely had time to log in that she heard shouting. It was a woman’s voice and it was close. She couldn’t catch what was being said.

That’s when she heard the second voice. And that one she knew very well, for having herself provoked his owner numerous times.

It was Haymitch.

There wasn’t many possibilities left then. The roof.

She ran there, either to help Haymitch or the person with him. When she arrived at the door, she finally recognized the woman’s voice. It was Camille’s, and she seemed truly mad.

“ _I can’t believe you!_ _I don’t understand you!_ _”_

She slammed the door open.

“ _What’s going on here?!”_ She was absolutely ignored by both of them.

“ _How can you refuse that?_ _How can you turn_ _me,_ _us down? Now?_ _”_ Camille was waving her arms around her, pacing the roof in front of Haymitch who was standing straight. Only his eyes gave his sadness away.

“ _Enough!”_ she was screaming in the void. They didn’t even seem to have noticed her presence.

“ _I wanna wait and see, it’s too soon! I don’t want to...”_ He sounded sorry, apologetic and angry in the same time.

“ _You’re a coward Haymitch! One day you’ll have to act! You can’t hide behind your bottle all your life! We all have our demons, you chose not to face them and you’ll regret it!_ _No wonder you fail protecting the people you love, you don’t even try!_ _You are a fucking coward!”_ She was way too close from him considering what she was saying, his hands were clenched in fists so tight his fingers were striped white and red. He was visibly holding his punches. He was at a thread to lose it.

“ _Camille...”_ it was useless to talk to him now, so she tried to reason her, it would be easier to take her out of her hysteria than him from his fury. They would be lucky if it didn’t trigger any flashback…

“ _Prove_ … _me… wrong...”_ She snarled.

She was definitely in his space now, her face only inches from his, and Effie was really growing worried.

“ _Camille Lacroix!_ _Ça_ _suffit!_ _Ton comportement est honteux_ _!”_ she shouted to be sure she heard her.

Camille head shot in her direction, her eyes wide and her face distorted by fury. But her expression soon morphed into something else. Her eyes filled with tears and her lips wobbled for a second. Then she laughed. A bitter laugh contrasting with her shining eyes.

She looked so much like Johanna at this instant you could believe they were sisters. Who had influenced the other most, that was the great mystery.

She stepped away from Haymitch, shaking her head, still chuckling. She looked at them in turn and ran to the door. Effie tried to stop her by putting a hand on her arm. She shrugged it but stopped a few steps further.

She open her coat and took something in her inside pocket. She turned and threw a little black box at Haymitch face.

Effie saw him catch it miraculously and when she turned her head back to where she was standing, she had disappeared.

She turned back to Haymitch who was squeezing the box in his hand, his face still red with anger.

“ _What was that?”_ she asked. She knew she shouldn’t have sounded angry, that it would not make anything better, but she couldn’t help it, she was truly worried. For both of them.

“ _Nothing.”_ he said waling past her. Certainly heading to the closest bottle of whiskey he could find.

“ _That was not nothing Haymitch! What did she want?”_ she was following him with great difficulties because of her heels digging into her flesh after a whole day wearing them.

“ _What? You’re gonna yell at me too now?”_ he shouted, turning suddenly to face her.

She shrieked and fell behind him. Hopefully there were only two steps left of the stairs, so she didn’t hurt herself too badly.

Just a sprained ankle apparently.

At least her fall did make Haymitch snap out of his furious daze. He held a hand for her to take but she refused it. She wasn’t really afraid but she still wasn’t sure he was in his normal state of mind.

He watched her stand up clutching the railing. His face blank, defeated. He ran a hand in his hair and fled to his room, the box now in his pocket, with a bottle and a glass in the other hand.

She thought she heard him mutter “ _She’s right. She’s fucking right.”_ over and over again.

She hopped to the fridge, took a bag of ice and sat on the sofa with her leg stretched in front of her, the bag on her swollen ankle. She intended to watch the Games but nothing was happening. The children were sleeping or hiding and the other were far enough from them for now. She let herself drift off and fell into deep slumber.

She woke up with the sensation of something heavy and cold being put on her feet. She opened her eyes to find Haymitch holding a new bag of ice on her ankle. The other had melted and had left a wet stain on the cushion.

He didn’t met her eyes when he spoke and she could hardly see him in the dark -what time was it? It was pitch black outside – but she didn’t like his defeated and sad attitude, his shoulders slumped and his hair falling like curtains in front of his face.

“ _I’m sorry.”_ it was barely a whisper.

“ _For what?”_

“ _Everything? Screaming at you, scaring you, leaving you there...”_ He was wasted, his words were slurred and he reeked of liquor. “ _I’m sorry...”_

“ _It okay Haymitch really.”_

“ _I’m sorry. I’m so sorry...”_

He wasn’t talking to her. Not really, he was taking care of her because she was there, but he was talking to all the person Camille had accused him of failing. The Tributes he had killed, Maysilee, their Tributes… So she humored him and let him apologize to the wind.

“ _It’s alright Haymitch. It’s alright.”_

“ _It’s not… She’s right. I failed...”_ He bowed his hand even more. “ _I’m sorry. Sorry.”_

“ _It’s okay, no one is mad at you, no one blames you Haymitch...”_ She was talking to him with the same soft voice she used when the children were panicking. She slowly hauled herself in a sitting position and put her hand on his. She took care of keeping her moves slow, wary of triggering a bad reaction out of him. He was just like a wounded wild animal.

He didn’t flinch at her touch so she took his hand

“ _I fail everyone. I can’t have anyone… They all die...”_

He wasn’t making any sense to her.

“ _No one is dying Haymitch. I’m here, the children are safe.”_ -’safe’ was a big word but time was not to quibbling on that. “ _No one is dead.”_

“ _Yes they are. Because of me. ‘Cause they were mine. ‘Cause I loved them.”_

_Then I am safe_ she thought but kept the joke for herself.

He had fallen on her legs now, his face buried in her stomach. She began petting his hair in a soothing gesture.

“ _Who’s gone Haymitch?”_ Maybe she shouldn’t have asked. He stayed silent for a while and she could feel wetness spread through the fabric of her dress. She didn’t comment on that. He wouldn’t have liked it.

Finally he answered, in a whisper absorbed by her belly.

“ _My mom… my brother… my girl…”_

So he had not always been a lonely old drunk. He did have a family. Did he lost them because of the Games? Like…

“ _I’m sure they don’t blame you. They love you Haymitch. They always will.”_

She let herself lie back down, taking him with her in her arms. They settled like that, her on her back and Haymitch on his stomach between her legs, his legs still on the floor and his head on her chest.

She kept petting his hair and his nape. Saying silly things inside to his ear.

“ _No one is dying Haymitch. Not because of you and not under my watch. I promise. Everything is gonna be fine.”_

She pressed a kiss on his forehead, and they both fell asleep tangled together.

They were startled awake by the TV that none of them had bothered turning off during the night.

They didn’t even acknowledge their embarrassing position.

Only Claudius’s word were in their heads.

_Attention Tributes!_

_The regulation requiring a single Victor had been suspended._

_From now on, two Victors may be crowned, if they’re both from the same District._

_This will be the only announcement._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> They’ve been heard! And Haymitch is a big cuddling teddy bear when he has the alcohol sad…  
> As always tell me everything! xxx


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21**

Katniss had found Peeta, hidden under layers of rocks, moss and leaves. They were safe, hiding in a little cave for now, but Peeta’s leg was in a dreadful state and needed antibiotics as soon as possible.

So that was their mission now. But antibiotics were expensive and they didn’t even have half of the money needed.

They were trying to put a hand on the biggest Sponsors but they weren’t easy to approach. Effie had gone to the VIP club with her shortest skirt and her highest heels in hope of catching their attention, and he had obtained a _rendez-vous_ with a female Sponsor that had promised him an appealing amount of money. 

He was on his way there, in the fanciest part of the City. He was walking slowly, not to say reluctantly, toward the wooden chalet  when he passed  in front of  Snow’s mansion. 

It was a big classical mansion, made of wood and stones, up a small hill, with perfectly groomed symmetrical french gardens all around and sand paths leading to the golden gate. He glimpsed a small black silhouette walking down the hill toward him. He stopped to see if he could recognize the  poor  person getting out of the dragon’s lair. 

The black leather long coat, the heavy boots and the flowing black hair couldn’t be mistaken. He didn’t need her to lift her head from her feet to recognize Camille.  Their eyes locked and she stopped dead in her tracks. Her eyes were puffy and red, her mascara smudged, and she hid her hands behind her back. Too late. He had  already  seen the white rose she had been carrying.  She quickly schooled her features into a scowl –  she was still angry at him then-  and they stayed like that, glaring at each other for a few seconds. 

He was worried for her. After her crazy  talk s and propositions about a  _Rebellion_ the day before, he was afraid she had been caught. Maybe because of him, the roof wasn’t soundproof  after all . 

But  he quickly reasoned himself. I f Snow had discovered she was involved in something like that, she wouldn’t be the one clutching a white rose. 

No. She had been warned. But of what? And did he really want to know? 

Not really. She had her problems and he had his.

She could deal with her own shit, he had enough in his plate for now. 

He resumed his walk to his appointment and didn’t look back when he heard the heavy gate moving  behind him. 

x

W hen he came back to the Penthouse after a morning of humiliating sexual activities with a woman that could have been his mother and half an afternoon of drinking to forget, he found Effie in the living room and a white rose in a vase on the coffee table.  He walked toward her carefully, she had her back at him and she had yet to say something. 

“ _He wants proofs. Or at least he wants the_ _children_ _to make_ _their story_ _convincing.”_ she said softly, a little too calm for his taste. “ _These are the terms of his investment.”_

Of course. 

He had accepted because he had found a good reason to. Money and something else certainly.  He wondered if Camille had something to do with this, if this was her rose here, if she had made some kind of bargain for them or more likely  in favor of that little  _rebellion_ of hers. Why would she help  _them?_ She had no reason to, she wasn’t Twelve Victor, she was Seven’s most feared Victor and Mentor.  The  _Heart of ice,_ the  _cold-blood killer._ He knew she wasn’t  _that_ cold, she was only pragmatic. She  only killed when needed and never looked her victims in the eyes, that what  had  saved her. Unlike him, she never saw the life, the soul, leaving someone’s eyes. That was what drove them all crazy. 

S he had been clever enough to spare herself from that. 

“ _Alright…_ _Okay.”_ That was too easy. They both knew it. Or maybe she was hiding something from him. “ _We can do that, right sweetheart?”_ She turned her head to face him with a fake smile that didn’t reach her red eyes. 

“ _Yes, of course!”_

And then she turned back toward the flower. Its smell was intoxicating and had embalmed half of the Penthouse already.

“ _So, did you get something today?”_ he asked her. He had himself earned a decent amount but it still wasn’t enough.

“ _One good offer and a few promises in exchange of...”_ she sighed and tilted her head toward the rose “ _Proofs.”_

He sighed too and took a sit in the armchair facing her.

She had cried, that was obvious. But why? That was only a message, a warning. There was nothing to cry about yet. They had been given a chance, that was kinda good and unexpected.

Yet she hadn’t even tried to hide it from him, so that must have been bad. And it must be because of the rose her eyes were glued to. It wasn’t like her to drop the mask like that, to be so calm, so… off. He barely recognized her. She wasn’t the cheerful stupid Escort anymore. She was only a beautiful woman in her thirties lost in her train of anxious thoughts.

He stood up and crouched in front of her, hiding the flower from her view, and put his hand on hers on her lap.

“ _What’s wrong?”_ she startled at his touch and words, realizing her _terribly rude_ attitude. In a blink, the Effie Trinket the pretty witty redhead Escort was back. He was equally relieved and disappointed of that.

“ _Oh, nothing! I am sorry, I am just a little tired that’s all. Do you mind if I take a moment before dinner? I trust you to follow the children’s progress.”_ she answered him with her usual smile. A few years back she could have fooled him. Not anymore though.

He lifted one of his hand and cupped her face in it, caressing her cheek with his thumb until she leaned in his comforting touch. He was studying her eyes but he couldn’t see a clue of what she was thinking. No sadness, no anger, no fear. Nothing. She looked defeated behind her mask.

And he realized that was the worst thing he could have found out. _She_ couldn’t be defeated. _He_ was the hopeless one, not _her._ If she lost hope then they were lost.

“ _Yeah. Yeah, you do that princess.”_ he stood up again freeing her from his touch and went to the TV. The children were safe in their cave, eating a few berries Katniss had picked. That wasn’t enough to keep them alive, and she couldn’t risk going for a hunt and leaving Peeta alone and vulnerable. “ _I’ll take care of the kids.”_

xxx

Katniss had left Peeta to go and find something else to eat and drink. She was really concerned by his leg and he needed to gain strength. Why she had pecked him on the cheek as a goodbye, that she didn’t know. It had seemed natural. They were friends after all…

She was filling their bottles when she heard the now familiar bell of the parachute. It fell a few feet away and she immediately ran to it.

It was an airtight container with something liquid in it, and of course, a message from Haymitch.

_You call that a kiss?_

_H_

Of course… How could she have forgotten the star-crossed lovers story?…

She didn’t want to crush Peeta’s heart, but if it was what they needed to save him and go back home, she could play that game. He would understand, wouldn’t he?

She came back to the cave with water, more berries and fruits and the container. She opened the latter first.

“ _What is it?”_ Peeta asked, hopeful. She wasn’t that confident. Considering the message, they didn’t deserve something big yet… She pulled the lid to discover some kind of soup inside and a spoon attached inside the lid.

“ _Soup.”_ she sat next to him and he outstretched a hand to take the bowl but she shoved him back. “ _I’ll do it.”_ She tried to sound affectionate but it didn’t really came out like she intended. More bossy than anything else. He leaned back reluctantly against the rock he used as a headrest.

“ _You don’t have to...”_

“ _You fed me once.”_ she didn’t look at him directly but she saw him wince in the corner of her eyes. She fed him spoonful of soup before he could speak. But it wasn’t enough to make him drop the subject.

“ _How did… how did you know?”_ he seemed truly surprised but she didn’t answer that. She just gave him a look he perfectly understood. She had found burned or too old to be sold bread on the threshold of her mother’s pharmacy back door every two or three days for weeks after their father’s death. Even pastries sometimes on the weekends. She had had no difficulties to guess who was doing that for her. He was in her class and saw her not eating much for lunch at school, and it was certainly not the dragon he had as a mother who would do that for her, for them.

“ _I think about it all the time...”_ he shook his head and looked at his lap. “ _I should have given it to you directly instead of leaving it on the floor…”_ he was getting agitated and his cheeks were flushed but she feared it wasn’t only of embarrassment.

“ _Shh shh. It’s okay, it’s okay.”_ She pushed him back again to prevent him from forcing on his leg. She kept feeding him the soup and took advantage of the moment to touch his skin. He was too hot for her taste… Not burning yet but it wouldn’t be long.

She knew what she had to do to get what he needed…

xxx

When the arrived at the club that night, Effie was back to her best Escort self. No trace of her little episode left. She was scampering on her towering golden high heels, babbling about the masterpiece her tiny piece of glittery fabric of a dress was.

As for Haymitch, the little break and the dinner had made him sober up a little and he was infuriated by her bubbly attitude again.

All in all, everything was much better. Back to normal.

Effie went straight for the dance floor and he went straight to the bar first. On his way he spotted Finnick and Jo on their own sponsor chase, and as always Chaff was waiting for him, letting Seeder do all the chores. He sat beside him and gestured the barmaid to get him a drink and a refill for his friend.

But Chaff remained strangely silent. That wasn’t the warm welcome he expected.

“ _Something wrong?”_ he asked after an awkward minute of only sipping noises between them.

“ _You tell me. You acquired a taste for the show after all these years?”_ Chaff answered bitterly.

So that was about that then. He knew and he had accepted her little offer, he was _in._ And was mad at him for refusing. For letting him down.

“ _Come on. You can’t blame me for being careful. You were the one to tell me to trust no one but myself.”_

“ _ You’re not being careful. You’re being stupid.”  _ Chaff slammed his glass on the counter. “ _ We need you on this, or it’s all useless.”  _

He didn’t answer. He didn’t understand why he was so important, Camille had mentioned that too but she had not said what she wanted from him. 

“ _ Why me? What does she want from me?”  _

Chaff only nodded toward the screen on the wall. He turned to see Katniss and Peeta, lying down together in the cave.  _ The children? She wanted his Tributes? What for? _

He immediately stopped caring about what Chaff  had to say  when he saw Katniss jumping on her feet and Peeta hauling himself on his elbows. He couldn’t hear what was happening because of the loud music, but they had activated the subtitles. 

A  new announcement? 

Already?

_Attention Tributes._

_Tomorrow at sunrise, there will be a feast at the Cornucopia. This will be no ordinary occasion. Each of you need something desperately, and we plan to be very generous hosts._

He didn’t even pay attention to the fight between the children. Certainly to decide if Katniss should go or not. He had enough to pay attention to around him.

Chaff was watching the screen with round eyes and a shocked and horrified expression on his face.

Effie was walking toward him, her smile plastered to her face but her panicked eyes diving into his own equally surprised ones. They had done nothing for that, given no money. Not even been consulted. If there was really Peeta’s medicine in there, had it been paid already? If yes, by who and how? If not, how are they going to pay for that?

Was that what the rose was about this morning?

But the highlight of the show was the shattering entrance of a very wasted, and maybe even high, Camille in the club.

Literally _shattering_ as she slammed the door open, lurched toward Chaff and fell in his arms, bursting into tears and knocking both their glass off the counter to the floor behind it.

The commotion attracted the attention, but he couldn’t find anything to say to dissipate the crowd gathering around them. Chaff was quicker and more efficient than him on this.

“ _A broken heart ladies and gentlemen! Nothing to worry about!_ _Nothing we can’t take care of!_ _”_ He screamed with a smile and a fake laugh, still holding the weeping girl to his chest.

Haymitch had a good occasion to study her more closely and saw two things that worried him immediately.

First, she was dressed more femininely than he had ever seen her. Short black dress, high heels, hair done and makeup all smuged. That was more skin than he had never seen on her, and he had never paid attention at how pretty she was, if you liked thin and very muscular girls. And secondly, there were bruises everywhere on her exposed skin.

“ _What happened?!”_ Effie asked joining them in two hurried strides. “ _We need to get her to the clinic!”_

They left the club as discretely as they could with a very drunk wailing woman in their arms and a fussing sparkly Escort at their side.

Now there were even more questions in Haymitch’s head and he was far from being drunk enough for them. He couldn’t forget the sight of the white rose in his living room and the other one in Camille’s hand this morning. And he couldn’t _not_ believe that was a coincidence. There was no such thing here. Especially now.

But they had one real big problem at hand now, in addition to the _Rebellion leader_ currently leaning on his side.

_To whom did they owe? And how are they going to repay?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m sorry, I know this is a little confused but I swear it will get clearer soon. I am not at my best but I really wanted to write a little to change my mind, so forgive me if I made mistakes or if this is not as well written as you expected.   
> I hope you liked this chapter, as usual tell me everything, your thoughts, your theories… I just love reading them.   
> I hope to be truly back soon to clear all those mysteries.  
> xxx


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m sorry, it’s been a while… I hope you missed me! (no I’m kidding)  
> Anyway I missed you!

**Chapter 22**

They were all gathered in Camille’s hospital room, waiting for her to wake up and watching the Games on the little screen in the corner of the room. The sound was off but it didn’t really matter for the moment. It was night, their Tributes were asleep and safe, they could focus on other things.

Like the girl lying in front of them, who just had a stomach lavage and a generous dose of sedative. She hadn’t really reacted well when she had realized they had been taking her to the Clinic and had began kicking and screaming hysterically and incomprehensibly at them and at the medical staff.

The doctors had not mentioned the bruises on her body and had not done anything about it. Not that they could really do something. Now she only had to wait for them to fade and it wasn’t the most urgent matter, but they hadn’t even taken a look at them. Neither when she arrived nor once she was clean and sedated.

Effie didn’t know what to think about that weird little reunion. Haymitch was half asleep in one of the chairs, his head on the wall behind him. Chaff was in the visitor armchair next to her bed, his elbows on his knees and his hands on his mouth. And she was sitting on the other chair against the wall, keeping an eye on Camille and the other on the screen. She didn’t really know what she was doing here. Haymitch and her should have gone as soon as she had been taken in charge but they had stayed, it had seemed so natural at the moment.

Now she felt like she was intruding. Chaff was obviously the one she had been searching for and she truly doubted she would be happy to see her or Haymitch in her room when she would finally wake up.

She would hate to see that so many people had witnessed her moment of weakness. She hated to be the center of attention when it was in a negative way. She wanted her reputation to stay untouched. She was the pragmatic Victor and the woman with an intimidating temper -cold, sarcastic, and yet exuberant and confident- and she wouldn’t change that for anything. A typical _love her or leave_ _her_ person. That had earned her respect among both the Game staff and the Sponsors. She would be furious when she would learn that the whole club had seen her mask shatter. 

S he was brought back to the present moment when Camille moved in her sleep, apparently having a nightmare.  But i t wasn’t violent, or not yet at least. Chaff had stood up but didn’t dare touch her  yet , and Haymitch was back with them. 

Then she began whimpering and muttering things. It didn’t make much sense but they could get the general idea. Until one very recognizable one. 

“ _A… Ari… Ariane… No Ari…”_

Chaff shushed her, putting hesitantly a comforting hand on her shoulder, trying to calm her. She didn’t attack him so the nightmare must not have been a violent one. It was a bad one though, tears were rolling on her cheeks and she seemed desperate,  curling on her side and hiding her face in her hands . 

Effie shifted in her chair uncomfortably, not knowing what to do. She wanted to help but she doubted her help would be welcomed. In fact she knew it would be a terrible idea to manifest her presence right now.  W hat she really wanted was to disappear.

“ _Ariane? Who’s Ariane?”_ Haymitch asked, a puzzled look on his face. She had forgot he wasn’t close of her, he had never really been. He had always been wary of her, even just after her victory when he had no reason to dislike her -apart from the fact that she had killed one of their Tributes, but that was the Games-, and she couldn’t understand why. 

E ffie didn’t answer him, Chaff did. Avoiding her eyes and keeping his voice low, afraid that  Camille would hear him  and trigger her .

“ _Her big sister. Killed herself when she was like 12. Sad story, she was like a mother to her. Basically raised her.”_

“ _Shh will you stop?”_ Effie hissed putting her hand on the girl’s ankle in a soothing gesture, only because she could see the girl getting agitated again. 

She was in no position to talk to him like that and usually he would have snapped one of his disagreeable remarks, but for once he obeyed and focused back on his task of calming the Victor. 

“ _I didn’t know...”_ Haymitch muttered, a thoughtful and sorry expression on his softened face.

“ _She never really talked about it_ _.”_ Effie said to reassure him a little. “ _But it wasn’t hard a piece of information to find out. The daughter of a_ _n eminent_ _French representative… It had been everywhere in the papers.._ _.”_ she added.

“ _That’s how you learned about it? Snooping around?_ _”_ he countered turning his eyes toward her with a questioning look. 

“ _I am an Escort. I know things._ _I don’t need to ‘snoop’ as you say._ _”_ she answered with the best smile she could form but keeping her eyes low in the direction of the bed. 

“ _You didn’t know anything about me...”_

He was way too sober and too clever for her taste. 

At her greatest surprise, it was Chaff who came as her knight with a shining armor on this matter. 

“ _You’re ancient buddy. Why would she care about gossips about you?”_ he said playfully but his eyes in hers were serious. 

He knew. 

He knew everything and she didn’t like it. 

But she agreed with him on one thing, and apparently so did Haymitch, they shouldn’t push the subject further in a place  more than  possibly bugged. 

They fell into a tensed silence again. She could feel Haymitch’s eyes on her, digging a hole in her nape, but she carefully avoided his eyes and kept hers on Camille. 

She couldn’t help wondering how she had got those marks. 

She had come to the Penthouse to give her the rose  in person. Her only words had been “ _You’ll need to make it convincing”._ She had not met her eyes and had not answered when Effie had asked her what she meant and why it was her who brought the rose. She had turned her back and walked to the elevator without a glance or another word. 

The last thing Effie saw when the doors closed on her was a tear from her closed eyes rolling on cheek and disappearing in her pursed lips. 

Since then she had never stopped wondering what she had done.  If the rose was initially for her or for them.

And now she was afraid she knew.

Her unexpected  _come back_ in the Capitol. Her fight with Haymitch. On the roof. All the unexplained things happening…

She was meddling in the Games.  I n  _their_ favor.  And now she was paying the price.

_But why?_

She was taken out of her thoughts by the sharp intake of breath and the sudden movement of Camille, now sitting in her bed with her eyes wide opened and panicked.

Chaff was trying to calm her, holding her and coaxing her to calm her shallow breathing, forcing her to look at him.

“ _Come on love, calm down. Breath. It’s over. It’s over...”_

Haymitch was watching him with an incredulous look and Effie had to fight the lump in her throat and the pang in her chest. She had never seen her like that. She had always been the strong one, unshakable. Laughing the worries away…

She made a move to touch and comfort her but Chaff shook his head and waved them out. It was certainly the wise thing to do as they weren’t wanted in the first place so they obeyed and left them alone.

The walk to the Training Center was mostly silent, but she could almost hear the gears turning in Haymitch’s head and she was preparing herself for the imminent question. He waited until they were safely in the elevator, away from prying ears.

“ _What happened between you and Chaff?”_

Not what she was expecting…

“ _What?”_ Of all the things that had happened that night, the looks she had had with his friend were what bothered him the most?

“ _Don’t play dumb. You know very well what I mean...”_

“ _No Haymitch, I really don’t!”_

“ _Come on! Last year you couldn’t even look at each other without trying to tear each other head off and now … You just… speak with your eyes and have each other’s back.”_

She couldn’t help but laughing at his childish pout and attitude.

“ _Why, Haymitch, do not be afraid, I am not trying to steal your best friend.”_

“ _That’s not what I mean.”_ He was definitely sulking now and she chose to laugh the whole thing off. She couldn’t tell him he truth anyway so, as well enjoy the moment to make fun of him a little. That what _Effie Trinket_ would do.

“ _Jealous then...”_ she stated petulantly, sauntering out of the elevator and to the living room.

She wasn’t expecting the hand on her waist and the weight of Haymitch’s body pinning her to the corridor wall. He didn’t seem really amused.

“ _You’re hiding things from me.”_ he accused her, hissing at her face.

“ _I am not hiding anything from you, and even if I did I do not remember being accountable to you.”_ she hissed back, all playfulness gone.

“ _You’re not. But I don’t like the fact that it involves friends of mine. I… do not hate you, princess but it won’t matter if I have to protect any of them. You’re Capitol,_ _you’re worth nothing_ _.”_ The hatred was back in his words and in his eyes.

She had stupidly thought that it had faded over the years. That he had maybe finally begun to consider her as a friend. As usual she had been wrong. She really wasn’t good at making friends. Maybe she wasn’t as good a judge of character as she thought she was.

She shoved him back, trying to hold back the tears she could feel burning in her eyes. 

“ _I do not hide anything from_ _ **you.”**_

And if some one  is being hidden things from, it’s her. She didn’t know what was going on with Camille and Chaff, but  _he_ could. He had been ‘ _invited’_ after all, from what she had gathered of their little fight. It wasn’t her fault if he had refused to be part of  her... whatever that was. 

She didn’t wait for him to answer, she walked around him and went for her room as fast as she could and slammed the door shut behind her. 

This time she couldn’t hold back her tears, the sobs escaped her mouth before she realized it. She fell on her bed and cried all the worries of the past few days away. 

Her fear for the children, her huge mistake -well, mistakes- with Haymitch, Camille’s weird attitude, Snow’s suspect understanding…  and now that.

It was too much to bear. 

And now she felt even more alone than ever. She had truly believed that Haymitch and her had reached a certain level of friendship, but she was mistaken. 

She was still nothing but a Capitol for him. A murderer. With benefits now apparently but nothing else. Nothing more. 

She was the one to blame, even when she was more wronged than he was. 

_You’re worth nothing._

If only he knew how true those words were…

xxx

She barely slept three hours that night. She had cried herself to sleep and had been woken up by the alarm she had set before dawn. She wanted to be there when the Feast would begin. 

She got dresses quickly, put on the minimal amount of make up – which meant foundation, concealer, powder, blush, mascara and eyebrows done-  and headed to the living room.

The first thing she saw was Haymitch, passed out on the couch. 

She considered that as long as he wasn’t dead choked by his own puke, it wasn’t her business. 

She was only an Escort after all. Her job was to take care of her Tributes and of the Sponsors. What happened inside the Penthouse wasn’t PR related so it didn’t matter to her. 

Why had she bothered all these years? For the gratefulness it earned he r. 

She turned the TV on, served herself a cup of coffee and settled in the armchair with her tablet. Ready for any situation. 

Peeta was in a dreadful state, shivering in the corner of the cave, and Katniss was watching him like a hawk from the rock at the entrance. 

When the sun appeared in the sky, she took her bow and ran to the Cornucopia. 

Effie’s mind was torn between ‘ _She absolutely needs to go’_ and  _‘he shouldn’t go it must be a trap’._

Cesar and Claudius began to get excited when she reached the clearing, waiting for her to throw herself in the lion’s den.

Just w hen she reached her package Effie saw Clove appearing behind her and gasped just as the two commentators screamed. The commotion startled Haymitch awake. 

“ _What the fuck? Should have woke me!”_ he told her but she didn’t care. Her eyes and her brain were fixed in the screen. She wouldn’t have answered him anyway. 

The girls were now battling, rolling on the ground, and they couldn’t do anything but watch and pray. 

Clove’s knife fell once, twice, but Katniss always ducked in time. 

Effie was clutching her cup so hard it was screeching under her fingers, and Haymitch was sitting at the very edge of his seat, his hand on his mouth. 

When Thresh arrived, Effie was persuaded that it was over. Katniss would be slaughtered and Peeta would die alone of his fever in the cave. 

But it didn’t go like that. 

Thresh lifted Clove in the air like she weighted nothing and slammed her head on the metal of the structure until she collapsed  unconscious on the ground.  Then he turned toward Katniss.

“ _Not this time Twelve. For Rue.”_

He ran away and so did Katniss. Just in time to avoid Cato who collapsed in tears next to Cloves now dead body. 

Once the girl safe in the woods again, she let out a breath she had been holding for too long, white stars were dancing in front of her eyes.  She kept her eyes on the screen for all of Katniss’s trip to the cave. 

O nce there, she opened the bag and got a healing salve and antibiotics out of it. 

Effie quickly checked on her archives the prices for those two items and almost screamed. 

It was way too expensive.  They couldn’t even afford half of the  less expensive one. 

What  _the hell_ had Camille done or said to obtain that for them? Why was she doing that? Why now? 

She felt Haymitch’s eyes on her, but did not look back at him. She told herself she didn’t she was being professional, but the truth was that she was afraid of what he would say to her and how she would react. 

She  didn’t want to burst into tear in front of him again. 

N ow that she was sure the children were safe and had no reason to move for the moment, she stood up with the intention of going to get Sponsors. She wouldn’t let Camille do her job any longer. 

“ _I’m sorry.”_

It was low but she heard him. She stopped in the threshold, keeping her back at him. 

“ _For what?”_

She wasn’t ready to forgive him. She wasn’t even sure there was something to forgive, maybe she had only been blind and naive, again.  Yet, she was pleased to hear those words, they meant he cared, even if just a little. 

She didn’t wait for his answer,  she got back to her room and resumed her beauty routine. 

She needed to be at her best. 

S he was alone now. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry that’s not the most exciting chapter but we have a little backstory here. Let’s be honest, Chaff knows, I know, you all know… Only Haymitch is being blind and stupid…  
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter and as usual tell me everything!   
> If everything goes as planned, I should be back here more often so I should have time to answer you again, yay!  
> xxx


	23. Chapter 23

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Sorry for the wait… writer’s block… My brain has been in vacations for a while but he is back now!  
> I hope you’ll enjoy this chapter!

**Chapter 23**

_Sorry for what?_

He did not even know.

He didn’t even know why he had said that. It had been the alcohol talking, no doubt.

He wasn’t sorry for having doubts on her, or for not liking the shift in her relationships with his friends.

She had never been close of any Victor, except Finnick maybe but everybody -well every women – loved him, so it didn’t really count. They had always hated her, he had always been the one who had to prevent them from being too mean or downright hit her sometimes. He had always been the closest things of a friend she had.

So what was it now? He was the one being left behind, he was the mean one and it was Chaff who was flying to the rescue? Nothing of all that made sense…

However he might have been sorry for scaring her and hurting her. He wasn’t the type of man to hit a woman usually. Especially not her. After all he kinda liked her, not that they were friends but she wasn’t the worst…

He was losing his mind.

It was the Games… They had never been so long and tense for him. Any other year they would have been out for days now. But they were quite unusual this year. Surely it was because of that…

Speaking of the Games, the TV was still on mute for the sake of his hangover, he could see that the children were asleep again now that they had taken their medication. It wouldn’t do miracles, Peeta’s leg would still be almost completely out of order, and Katniss would have a nasty scar on her forehead, but at least they wouldn’t die of an infection.

And the others Tributes had apparently their own problems to take care of for now. So they were safe enough.

Effie was gone chasing Sponsors and he doubted she would like to see him right now. And she wasn’t the one who would give him the answers he wanted. No, the one with the answers would hopefully be awake and alone now.

He quickly drank a cup of coffee and engulfed a chocolate muffin and almost ran – well staggered – to the elevator.

He arrived in her hospital room to find her in new clothes, packing her things and filling papers. She glared at him when he appeared on the threshold then turned back to her paper, signing so furiously she all but torn it.

“ _How’re they doing?_ ” she asked, still showing her back to him.

“ _Fine. For now. They’re much better._ ”

“ _Good_.”

They fell back into an awkward silence. He didn’t want to talk here, so he had to wait until they’re out but he wasn’t the best at filling the blanks.

“ _What do you want H_ _aymitch?”_ she sighed in an exasperated tone.

“ _Nothing. Just… checking on you.”_ It was stupid, she would never believe that.

She looked at him and narrowed her eyes, trying to read through him but failing. “ _Did you like the gift?”_ she asked then. It was an innocent question but he knew it wasn’t so innocent.

“ _What gift?”_ If she meant the box she had thrown at her face, no, he hadn’t opened it. To be very honest, he had completely forgotten about it. He had thrown it somewhere in his room and had been too wasted to think about it after.

She rolled her eyes and took a long breath which he understood as a _this explains that._

“ _You were never told it was rude not to open people’s gift?”_ She said turning to get her purse and putting back all her jewels on. She had a hundred of rings, bracelets, necklaces, earrings and ear piercings. She took more time with the biggest of them, a cicada shaped silver earring linked by a little chain to a studded helix ring. It was so big she winced in pain inserting it in her cartilage. Why would she torture herself with things like that he could never understand.

Once she was done with that, she took her coat and lead him out. “ _Come on, I need some air.”_

He followed her outside. She didn’t say a word until they reached the sand path leading to the lake. There she finally stopped and turned to face him.

“ _So. What do you want?”_

“ _I… I want to talk about…_ _I want in.”_ he wasn’t really sure that was what he wanted to say, or even what he should have said, but it was too late now. It was the only way he would find the answers to his questions it seems, so…

She came closer with a chuckle and a sneer. “ _What made you change your mind? Don’t like to_ _have things kept from you_ _? To feel rejected?_ _To be put aside?_ _”_

That was fair turnabout. He hadn’t been kind to her after her victory, he had tried to keep the other victors away from her. He had considered she belonged to the Careers. So he didn’t answer the accusation.

“ _Oh I know! You don’t like other people doing your work for you? Maybe you should do it then.”_

he was about to ask if she really was the one behind all those mysterious gifts and respond to her but she held a hand in front of his face. “ _I’m not here to fight and it’s not the adequate place anyway.”_ She stopped talking and waited for a group of stylist to pass behind them. Then she resumed in a lower voice. “ _Take what’s inside the box and come to_ _Tigris’s_ _workshop_ _tonight at midnight_ _._ _Only if you’re sure._ _Once you’re in there’s no way out._ _”_

He nodded and she left, going back toward the city. He only then noticed she was slightly limping, certainly from the blows she had received.

He went straight back to the penthouse and to his bedroom. He vaguely remembered throwing the box somewhere in the direction of the bedside table. The room was such a mess it took him ten minutes to find it under the bed hidden behind a pile of socks and underwear.

He looked at the box first. It was all black, no inscription or brand logo, and quite heavy for a thing small enough to fit in his hand.

Then he opened it. Inside was a classic silver watch with white numbers on a black background. H e noticed something on the background. It was matte but there was a motif just below the twelve, only distinguishable because it was glossier than the rest.

A small cicada. Just like the one on Camille’s earring. Exactly the same stylized shape.

He studied the device. It couldn’t just be a present. It must have had some use. He shook the box to get the little pillow out and under it was a little piece of paper with three little drawings.

The first one showed the side of the watch and pointed at two little buttons. The second one showed the first button effect. Either the cicada’s eyes were green, with an arrow pointing to a Ø, or they were yellow and the arrow pointed to a cicada. The last drawing was about the last button, this time the cicada’s eyes were red and the arrow pointed to a crossed cicada.

He didn’t need much time to understand those pictograms.

_No bugs, bugged, bugs jammed._

That was what it was for. Why her earring was so big. It was a bug jamming device.

He immediately regretting not opening it sooner. It would have came handy more than once. And keeping something like that in his room had been quite dangerous, but he couldn’t have known that.

He decided to burn the little piece of paper, it was the only real evidence he needed to get rid of. The box in itself was quite innocent.

Then he tried the watch. It was quite heavy for the size. There must have been a lot of things hidden in there. Then he pushed the first button.

Yellow. Of course.

Then he moved to the Penthouse roof and the eyes turned green. He pushed the button again and the small light disappeared. He was going to use it wisely and sparingly. It still could be detected, simply jamming a room for too long could be suspect.

He went back down to the living room and switch the TV on. The kids were still safe in the cave. It was both good and bad. Nothing was happening and the Gamemakers would not tolerate that much longer.

He had missed lunch time, and Effie had not come back to eat at the Penthouse. She must have stayed out with some Sponsors. Not that they really need them apparently. They seemed to have their own private benefactor. He made himself a sandwich, took a bottle of whiskey without bothering with a glass and settled on the couch to follow the Games.

Nothing of importance happened. Katniss and Peeta were recovering, Foxface and Thresh were hiding, and Cato decided to stop hiding and hunt them down at the end of the afternoon. Hopefully he was still far from the kids and wouldn’t reach them tonight.

When he saw the night had fallen on the City, Haymitch decided to go to the Club to see the other Victors or even catch a glimpse of Effie in the crowd. On his way there he wondered if the symbol was also a sign of recognition between the members of this _Rebellion,_ or if it was only for some special ones.

He didn’t really know why Camille _needed_ him that much, but he was beginning to have an idea. If she wanted the end of the Games and the Capitol, she would need people and facts as proofs. And she couldn’t find a better duo than Katniss and her sister, and with Peeta on top of it… If they won, they would be the living proofs that the Capitol could be defeated.

And she needed _him_ to make them take the right direction. _Her_ direction.

The club was full. It was a sea of dyed hair and glittery fabrics, a nightmare. He spotted Chaff and Finnick in a corner, bought a bottle of bourbon and joined them.

Chaff seemed much happier to see him now than he had been the last few days. He listened to Finnick telling his last stories of crazy Sponsors trying to steal his underwear and the water of his bath while scanning his surroundings. No earrings, no watches on the people around. No Effie Trinket either.

Then his attention was attracted to the seal ring on Chaff little finger. He had never seen the ring the years before and had thought it was just a coquetry at first. Paying a little more attention to it now, he saw the little bug engraved in it and the two ‘buttons’ on each side of the seal. He couldn’t find anything on Finnick though so he kept his mouth shut for the present.

They were all laughing at some stupid joke when the canon boomed in the TV behind them. Chaff’s face closed in a blink, his jaw clenched and he kept his only trembling fist in front of his mouth for a second. Haymitch was about to put a hand on his shoulder and offer him some reassuring words but Chaff lifted his hand to stop him.

“ _It had to be.”_ were his only words as he stood up and left the Club. Finnick and Haymitch exchanged a look but no words. There was nothing to say. They finished their drink in silence and when Finnick declared he was going to see if Mags needed help, Haymitch saw the time on his brand new watch. He wasn’t used to it and hadn’t thought about checking before.

He was already fifteen minutes late. So much for making a good first impression. Not that he cared.

He left the club as quickly as he could without looking suspicious and made his way to Tigris shop. He knew perfectly were it was, it was one of Effie’s favorite and she had dragged him there more than once to get him new clothes. The workshop in itself was in the small alley behind the shop, with no sign to indicate the small wooden door.

He lifted his hand to knock but hesitated. Noise could attract attention. He tried the handle but it was closed, of course. So he knocked gently, hoping it would be enough to be heard inside.

The stylist herself opened the door, only a few inches at first to look at him, then let him in. She was even more….feline than the last time they had met. She had had a mouth surgery and was wearing cat pupil lenses -at least he hoped it was lenses, medicine had not made such progress right?. She didn’t say a word but showed him a short corridor leading to a black door before returning to her sewing machine.

He took the corridor, there was light spilling under the door and he could see shadows of people moving behind it. Then came the voices. One woman and two men. One seemed familiar but the other was completely foreign to him.

“ _He is going to come.”_ That one was the woman. Camille no doubt.

“ _I hope so.”_ The stranger. He sounded… Capitol.

“… _...your favorite distraction.”_ He couldn’t catch the whole phrase, it’s was mumbled by the deep voice.

“ _She ain’t a distraction!”_ Camille hissed back.

He was reluctant to interrupt but he was even more embarrassed to overhear their conversation so he turned as loudly as he could the handle of the door to signal his arrival.

The three heads turned to look at him. Chaff, who he had thought was gone to his floor to make arrangement for the boy, Camille, with a smug _told you so_ expression on her face, and an other man who looked strangely familiar even if he couldn’t recall where from.

Camille stood up to make the necessary introduction.

“ _Haymitch, this is Plutarch Heavensbee. Plutarch, no need to tell you who he is.”_

“ _A pleasure to finally meet you, Haymitch.”_ The man said outstretching his hand for him to shake. The face and now the name…

“ _Heavensbee_ … _The Gamemaker?”_ he asked, just as the memory hit him, his hand had a spasm and crushed a little the man’s hand.

“ _Hum, yes. Well, not anymore.”_ The man answered, wincing and taking his red and white hand back. “ _Adviser now. I lost the race against Crane three years ago.”_

Adviser… Too proud to go back to being a simple Gamemaker after losing to the Head Gamemaker title.

He sat with them around the table. They talked for hours, explaining him the whole _Rebellion_ thing. How she had found the contact through Heavensbee, how they had built a whole military base ready to hide all the people who would need protection…

Alaska… The forgotten part of the country in this ‘division’. Smart. Separated from the Capitol by the whole Canadian country, which was on their side thanks to Camille’s work.

He had to admit he had underestimated her.

She had worked on that all alone for years, with only Plutarch as an ally here. Chaff was a freshman here, just like him.

And Heavensbee wasn’t just a Gamemaker. He was an FBI agent. There are a lot of them inside the Organization, protecting it from the investigation intended against it, but _he_ was on the good side. He had helped to build a secret FBI team called _Thirteen_ , like if it was a forgotten District.

 _That made him_ _what?_ _A_ _… ‘triple agent’?_

They stayed there for hours and hours. There was a lot to catch up and he did his best to focus his clouded mind on all the information thrown to his face. He fell asleep in the middle of one of Plutarch’s monologue about Canadian politics.

Tigris woke him up but all the others were already gone. All the papers and the blackboard had disappeared.

When he got out the sun was already high in the sky.

He walked back to the Penthouse like a zombie. Playing the card of the drunk man who had slept in the street for the few people he crossed path with. That was odd. It was already nine thirty at his watch, there should have been much more people in the street. It was all weirdly silent.

He didn’t like that and quickened his pace.

He had not put a foot in the living room that he was assaulted by a pink and orange fury.

“ _Haymitch for God’s sake where were you?! Are you that drunk that you don’t even remember what you’re here for?”_ She shouted at him, pushing him to the sofa were Cinna and Portia were already sitting, eyes glued to the screen.

He took a last look at Effie and noticed her eyes were shiny and she was biting on her thumb, like when she was particularly stressed.

Then he turned to the screen. It was barely ten in the morning but the Arena was pitch black, their kids were on the Cornucopia fighting with Cato and they were surrounded by huge mutant dogs barking and showing their enormous teeth dripping of drool. Size of German mastiff, strength of a Anatolian shepherd and the nastiness and jaw of a Doberman, as helpfully precised by Claudius. And not bred to watch sheep for sure…

Cato had Peeta in arm wrench and Katniss had her bow aimed at them. They were talking but the dogs barks and Caesar and Claudius hysterical comments were covering their voices.

The scene seemed to last forever.

They could only watch their mouths move and occasionally Cato taking a step back, but they were sitting there, powerless. All their work was going to be ruined.

Katniss couldn’t shot him without condemning Peeta with him…

Haymitch was in a daze. Like if he was watching himself watching the screen. He was outside of his body. He had no control on it. He could see the two stylist holding hands with their faces torn by anguish. And Effie… she seemed as agitated as numb. Her legs were trembling, she was nibbling on her thumb like a child being scolded, but her eyes were hollow, watching the screen without seeing it. She too was persuaded it was over…

But then Katniss shot her arrow. Right in Cato’s hand. He fell back while Peeta ducked to avoid being taken with him.

He fell in the pack of rabid dogs. This time they could hear his screams of pain and agony. They could see his terrified face as he was devoured alive. The tears from his eyes mixed with the blood coming from his mouth covering his face.

A second arrow struck him. Right in the heart and the canon boomed in the night.

It was over.

They had won.

What were they waiting for?

The sky cleared and the dogs disappeared. But there was still no rescuing team. No announcement.

No.

No. They couldn't do that.

The kids too were wondering what was happening. They climbed down from the Cornucopia and walked for a while in the grass toward the lake.

_Attention Tributes,_

_There has been a slight rule change. The previous revision allowing for two Victors from the same District has been… Revoked._

_Only one Victor may be crowned._

_Good Luck!_

_And may the odds be ever in your favor._

_How dared they?_

“ _HOW DARE THEY?”_ He only realized he had shouted it out loud when he felt the eyes of the others on him. 

Effie was downright crying now. Silently but her cheeks were streaked with the red path of tears on her powdered face.  She took his hand and pulled on it to make him sit back on the sofa. It was only then that he realized he had also bolted out of his seat. 

He sat but kept her hand in his. She was squeezing it like an anchor  and it help him to focus  and calm down.

Their two Tributes were standing on the field. Face to face. 

Katniss put a hand in her pocket and Peeta’s eyes grew wide. She took it out with a handful of little black berries. Peeta was shaking his head left and right but Katniss took his hand in hers, murmured something and he stopped. 

“ _What are those?”_ he asked, he had never seen berries like that. 

“ _Deadly nightshade, the girl… Foxface died earlier after stealing some from Peeta.”_ Cinna answered, his eyes still on the screen. 

Effie’s head however shot to him, “ _Weren’t you watching at all? What were you doing?”_

He shushed her with his fingers on her mouth. It stayed there until she took it away herself. He was too focused on what was happening on the screen. 

She was crazy. 

They were crazy… 

This time, everything would have really been for nothing. They wouldn’t even have one winner. Not one Victor. 

And they would all be dead the next morning.

Their hand were at an inch from their mouth when Claudius panicked voice echoed one more time in the silence of the Arena. 

_STOP! STOP!_

_Ladies and gentlemen, may I present the winners of the Seventy-fourth annual Hunger Games._

His ears were ringing. 

It was impossible. 

They had won. 

They had beaten the odds. 

They had won their bet. 

Cinna and Portia had fallen in each other arms. Effie was laughing and sobbing like a mad woman, still clutching his hand. He used it to pull her to him and squeeze her in his arms. 

She sobbed on his shoulder for a while. A minute or an hour he couldn’t tell. He had buried his nose in her hair and was intoxicating himself with the smell of her perfume, of her skin. 

They had won. 

The kids were safe. 

They had a chance. 

It was when it struck him right in the face. 

They had won. She had won. She would be gone in a few months, after the Victory Tour, and he would never see her again. 

His hands cupped her face before he could think about it and his mouth crashed on hers. He kissed her like if it was the last time. And she responded in kind. 

If the stylist saw them, they stayed silent. He wasn’t even aware of there presence. 

Nothing else counted right then but the feeling of her soft lips on his chapped ones, the taste of her tongue in his mouth, the weight of her body against his. 

It was their last quiet moment together, he new it. Soon would come the anxiety for the children, then the frenzy of the Victory, and finally the hole of her absence

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, the next chapter will be the last of this first part of the story.   
> I hope you likes this looong chapter. As usual let me know in the comments! I looooove reading comments, I live for comments so, please! Tell me all your theories on what might happen next! xxx
> 
> ps: Stay tuned, there might be a Christmas (or rather a Xmas) story in the making….


	24. Chapter 24

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here we are… the last chapter of this first part…  
> I hope you enjoyed this story so far, and that you'll enjoy this short but important chapter! There are many little details to find there!  
> And don't worry, it will come back very soon!  
> (and please forgive me, I struggled with the time concordance on this one, god knows why...)

**Chapter 24**

Katniss had been quite lucky.

She only had to stay for three days in the Games clinic. Time for her bruises to fade and to get her ear examined. There wasn’t much to do about that for now, she would have to wait and see.

Peeta had been far less lucky.

They had to amputate his leg at knee level. Even if they had stopped the infection, that part had already been damaged beyond repair. He was still in the Clinic, and he would need to stay for a while, at least until they get him his prosthetic.

So, there she was. Alone with Haymitch and Effie in the Penthouse. Waiting for Peeta to get out so the could get over with the ‘Victors’ interviews’ and finally go home.

There was nothing to do there.

Effie was pacing around the living room, waiting for a sign that they were allowed to go out, Haymitch was sprawled in the sofa, acting more drunk than he really was, and she was watching out the window.

There was a hysterical crowd at the door of the Center, screaming her and Peeta’s name, waving flags and, more importantly, trapping them inside.

“ _This is unbelievable. I have not seen such a frenzy since Finnick’s Victory. One would think they’d have learned of their mistake, but apparently not!”_ Effie complained from the window at the opposite side of the room.

They were also blocking the back entrance then…

She shot a puzzled look at Haymitch, asking for an explanation. At least, the story would occupy them for a while.

“ _We’ve been trapped in here for five days. They were all crazy, they even had tents. They were waiting to see him, even just a glimpse of his face through a window.”_ he shook his head with a disgusted face. “ _If I remember well, they sold a picture of a reflection of his_ _torso_ _in a mirror_ _through a window_ _for thousands of dollars...”_

“ _Eight thousand...”_ Effie supplied thoughtfully, her eyes still lost down on the crowd.

“ _In the end, we’ve had to take him here until the evacuated him from the roof.”_

“ _Wow...”_ That was scary… And quite fun too. Imagining all these businessmen and politician, fangirling for them like teenagers at a One Direction concert….

“ _Yeah…_ _Guess you’re their second best investment after Finnick now.”_ he stated, taking a sip of his whiskey.

“ _Aaand this is happening all over again.”_ Effie sighed, falling in an armchair. “ _Can’t they do anything? What are the peacekeepers for?”_

Just at this moment, the elevator’s door chimed, and the strange woman she remembered from the lake came in. Camille? Or something like that…

Effie tensed immediately and Haymitch jumped on his feet, on his guard.

Her features were sharper than she remembered, if that’s possible. She looked like she was only made of strategically placed muscles and bones. Her eyeliner was as sharp as a blade and her crow black hair straight like straw.

“ _What are you doing here?”_ Effie asked in a breath, far away from her usual cheerful Escort tone, with a light emphasis on the last word.

To Katniss, it really wasn’t the most important part of the question.

“ _I need the girl.”_ she answered coldly.

Katniss could see Effie becoming white as a sheet. Haymitch was only frowning.

“ _No. No, not yet...”_ Effie stammered, out of breath. “ _She’s too...”_

“ _You’re never too young to learn.”_ Camille scoffed, throwing a disdainful look at her Escort.

She could feel there was something happening here she couldn’t understand. _Yet_ , apparently. And she wasn’t sure she wanted to understand.

“ _But, no. It’s not that. But I still need her, now.”_ This time she was watching Haymitch. They looked in each other’s eyes for a second that felt like an eternity. Finally Haymitch turned toward her and nodded toward Camille.

“ _Go with her.”_ She saw in his eyes that there was no questions to ask. She simply stood and walked toward the elevator.

“ _Oh and by the way, can I borrow your watch? I broke mine.”_ she was pointedly looking at Haymitch but it was Effie who answered.

“ _A watch? Don’t you have a cell phone?”_ she frowned.

“ _I didn’t take it.”_ she blurted out without glancing in her direction.

Haymitch sighed and reluctantly took off the watch -she did not remember seeing before – from his arm and handed it to her.

“ _Thanks! Don’t worry I’ll take care of it!”_ she said as she retreated, pretending to drop it. “ _See ya!”_

With that she sauntered into the elevator and Katniss followed her.

She fought to put it on her wrist for at least four floors. Katniss couldn’t help laughing a little. But it didn’t seem to bother her.

Katniss could sense she was the kind of person you had to be real with, not fake and smooth like Effie was.

She kinda liked her. She wasn’t one to beat around the bush and she liked that. Even if she was too eccentric for her taste.

“ _I can see why you broke yours.”_ she tried to joke.

Camille shot her an annoyed look from under her bangs. She was lightly shorter than her so it really looked like a Kubrick gaze. Then she shrugged with a scoff, “ _Point taken.”_

She had not noticed before, but her right eye was red, slightly bloodshot and the right side of her forehead was a yellowish color under the neon lights, despite the visible layer of foundation or concealer and the bangs hiding a good part of it.

She had become quite an expert in shades of bruises these last few days, and she could tell that it had been a nasty blow. It must have been four or five days old.

As soon as they left the elevator, Camille stopped smiling, talking, or moving any muscle of her face. She remained absolutely blank, cold, unreadable.

Katniss followed her to an other elevator next to the kitchens, that lead them to the basement of the center. It was only corridors with closed black doors every few feet. It looked like a hospital. Or a prison.

“ _Not the most charming part of the place I know,_ _sorry._ _But the only way out.”_ she apologized when she saw Katniss puzzled face.

They finally passed a door opening on concrete stairs leading outside. It was disguised as a city maintenance store. They were in a part of the City Katniss had never seen. Well, she had seen it from her window but she had never been there.

They were in the residential part. Chalets, mansions and luxurious complexes everywhere. It was deadly silent.

Camille led her to the biggest property. She passed the huge golden gates to open a smaller door in one of the surrounding walls.

It was incredible. She had never seen a house that big and opulent. Not a house, a mansion. Surrounded by neat perfectly groomed French gardens. She couldn’t believe it was her house.

“ _Is that yours?”_ she asked, to lift the doubt. Camille laughed a little.

“ _This is where I stay, but it’s not mine, no.”_

She didn’t go to the mansion in itself. She kept walking into the gardens.

“ _Why are we here?”_

“ _Because no one is going to bother us here.”_ she answered while doing something on her -Haymitch’s – watch.

They walked silently for a minute, until they reached a more furnished part of the garden, wilder. With big trees and flower bushes and a greenhouse in the back.

Katniss was really beginning to wonder what she was doing here. Why they needed to be here to talk. And if they were going to talk at all.

“ _I’ll be direct and honest with you Katniss.”_ she finally began to talk. _“They are not happy with you.”_

“ _Why? ‘Cause I didn’t die?”_

“ _Because you tricked them. The City might look euphoric right now, but the core...”_ she lifted an eyebrow and look pointedly at their surroundings _“...is humiliated.”_ _s_ he scolded her. “ _And that is the part you care about.”_

“ _What do you mean?”_

“ _I mean that they didn’t like you playing with the rules. You showed them up and it was everything but a good idea.”_ she continued with the same patronizing tone.

“ _But it wasn’t MY idea! I never asked for this!”_ She yelled, furious. She had never asked them to change the rules, she had never asked to be there, she only tried to survive like they wanted and made a show of it.

“ _I’m not saying that. I know you’re not the only culprit here.”_ She said, lifting her hands in an offer of peace and calming down a little by taking a deep breath. It was no use to shout. _“_ _But_ _you certainly aren’t the only casualty either!_ _Do you truly think killing yourself would have been a good idea? What were you hoping for? Punishing them? Punishing the wealthiest and most eminent personalities in the country by making them loose the money they had invested in you?_ _You weren’t punishing them, or even Snow. You were endangering everyone else._ _”_

She looked like she was expecting something. An apology maybe, or a sign of understanding. But she didn’t understand. Well, she did understand the general idea of making them loose they investment as not a clever move. But what did she meant by _endangering others_?

She moved again toward the greenhouse and entered it. Katniss had no other choice than to follow her, she could tell they weren’t done yet.

“ _Listen,_ _I’m just warning you, you_ _will have to be responsible._ _F_ _rom now on,_ _you’ll have to think before you act_ _._ _You’re not alone in this, this is not just about you._ _”_ She stopped talking and took shears on a wall before heading toward a big white roses bush.

What did she mean now, _not alone in this?_ She had Peeta yes, and her sister maybe, but what could happen to them? She had done her job here, gave them a good show, a Victor. Two even!

“ _You can’t get out of it now, you’re not free anymore._ _Y_ _ou have a role to play_ _. We all have a role here. I’m only doing mine.”_ She punctuated these two lasts phrases by cutting two magnificent and fragrant roses. She took them to the table behind her and took two boxes on a shelf.

“ _Which is?”_ _W_ hat was she doing? Warning her? Threatening her? Trying to teach her something?

“ _Making sure you stay in line.”_ she answered flatly without looking at her, too busy knotting little ribbons around the roses’ stems.

“ _What is mine?”_ If that role she had to play was so important, maybe she could at least give her a clue...

“ _Figure this out.”_ her tone had slightly changed, her voice was wavering a little. Yet Katniss couldn’t see anything different. She was simply working with a bright pink ribbon on the second rose, before putting one in each box and closing them.

“ _And what is Haymitch’_ _s_ _then?”_

“ _The example.”_ She stated as she handed her the two white boxes and Haymitch’s watch. Her face was blank again but her mouth was slightly pursed and her eyes were shiny with some expression Katniss could not read. Sadness, anger, shame, fear… something else.

“ _Of what?”_ How on Earth could Haymitch be an example of anything?

She didn’t answer that question. Instead she took back her shears and went back to her gardening.

“ _You can go now.”_ When Katniss didn’t move she took a look at her and quickly understood her problem. She rolled her eyes with an amused smile. _“Three right, twice left, and right._ _Open only the white doors._ _Grey_ _elevator.”_

This time Katniss retreated to the greenhouse door. She wasn’t welcomed here anymore. She had just passed it when she heard her one last time, far behind her back.

“ _Good luck_ _Girl on fire.”_

She followed her instructions and found herself in the Training Center kitchens. The walk back had felt much longer than the one out.

She found the ‘usual’ elevator and went back to the Penthouse.

Haymitch and Effie were still there, waiting for her. She must not have been away for more than an hour. They both bolted to their feet when they saw her enter the living room.

Haymitch pounced on her and took the watch from her hand, then he froze when his eyes fell on the boxes.

“ _Where did you get those?”_ he whispered. It was the first time she heard him whisper. Or doing anything else than shout, mock or snarl sarcastically. He looked truly worried.

“ _She gave… made them for me.”_ she answered.

“ _You were_ _at_ _...”_ he begun before shaking his head and taking the boxes from her hands.

He opened the first one, inside was the rose with the pink ribbon knot.

He frowned for a second, but soon recovered and turned to give that one to Effie.

She froze and her face lost all its colors in a second. She took the box with a shaking hand and excused herself with an equally shaking voice before disappearing behind her bedroom’s door.

“ _Come with me.”_ Haymitch said, giving her back the other box after rapidly peering inside it, and dragging her to the roof.

“ _What’s going on?”_ she asked when Haymitch finally let go of her arm. “ _What are those?”_

“ _Katniss, you’re going to listen to me carefully, this is serious.”_ he was waiting for an answer so she nodded her understanding. Maybe this time hewas going to give her better explanations than Camille ones. 

“ _Good. These are warnings, Katniss. These are Peeta, your sister, your families and all the others. The game just began for you. Now, you will have to do as you’re expected, no more_ _challenging the authority, or you won’t be the one directly suffering the consequences. Are we clear?”_

“ _And what am I supposed to do then? What role do I play now?”_

“ _The madly in love teenager. Give them what they paid to see. The show isn’t over. You were in love, you ARE in love, you weren’t acting for the games, do you understand?”_

She nod ded again. He  was  deadly serious she c ould see it, he almost look ed sober.

They stay ed silent for a while. 

She use d this moment to open the box. If he gave it to her, it must mean it’s hers.

Inside there  was a  white rose, perfectly identical to the other one, except that this one was tied up with a black ribbon. Or three braided ribbons to be exact. And she had threaded one of the loop in a little golden object. 

Her  lucky charm. 

Her bird pin.

She hadn’t even realized she had lost it.

It remind ed her of Haymitch’s outburst in the train the first time he had seen it. What did it mean to him? What were the odds that her lucky charm would be an object linked to the Games? To him? 

_The example..._

She never heard him talking about his family, a lover or even just a dog. He  was just a lonely old drunk. She had never thought that it could be his choice. But what did happen to him then? 

“ _Haymitch?”_

His gaze was lost in the darkening sky, his eyebrows furrowed and his jaw clenched. He took a  few seconds before turning his head toward her with a grumble. 

She  didn’t need to ask. Not anymore. She could see it in his eyes. She knew that look. The look of someone buried in his old  unpleasant  memories, in his fears and traumas. She had seen it enough times in the hollow of her mothers eyes. 

It was enough to know for now.

She just nodded toward the door and they got back down.

Once they were settled at the dinner table, everything was back to normal. Haymitch was drinking and Effie was babbling about everything and anything.

Cinna and Portia even joined them for dessert, indicating that the crowd had been broken up.

xxx

A week later, Peeta was released from the hospital. He was nowhere near ready to go back to a normal life, but he was well enough to sit in front of a camera or stand long enough for the crowning,  with a cane  to help him . 

He couldn’t even wear his prosthetic properly yet. He only put  it ,  above his bandage, in public but his stump wasn’t healed enough to bear  it for long. Most of the time, he moved in a wheelchair. 

And she quickly understood  that what Camille and Haymitch had told her was no joke at all. 

They made her push him everytime they were out, Effie was setting cute scenes for the paparazzi, so they could  _show their blossoming love_ to everyone,  and Haymitch was selling their love story on every interview he could obtain.  Their every move s were spied, filmed, and analyzed. 

The crowning took place later that planned.

They had to wait for Snow to come back from some  _‘business trip’_ he had been on.  Business trip that saved her from the  apparently  usual meeting with him, replaced with the one she had had with Camille.  Which was weird, she was a Victor, she wasn’t supposed to be on his side, even less his helping hand… 

Katniss felt bad at facing her tormentor while he was putting a golden crown on her head. It was surreal.

But she couldn’t do anything but smile and thank him for his congratulations.

She held tight at Peeta’s hand, as much for the show as  to  ground herself to something real. A reminder of why she was resisting the murderous pull in her stomach. 

_Murderous_ … What had they done  to her?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am very sorry, you'll have to be patient to see what happened outside… ;)  
> So, our dear brunette, friend or enemy?  
> As usual, tell me what you thought of this chapter and what you want to see in the next part!  
> And again, thank you for your support in this long and big adventure!
> 
> Next Thursday, and every Thursday until Christmas, I will post a chapter of a very fluffy and steamy Xmas story so if you want to see it, stay tuned!
> 
> Love you, and see you in January for more Vicarious!  
> (You might get a little Christmas present in the meantime here but shhh…)


	25. Chapter 25

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First of all… HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!  
> We are back in here, new year, new part of the story! This one is a little ‘filler’ chapter, you wanted some background and you’ve been heard. It will take us back in this verse slowly!  
> I hope you’ll like it!

**Chapter 25**

**_Nine years ago…_ **

“ _Do you know why you’re here, Miss Lacroix?”_ asked the old man, with his white hair, his almost yellow hazel eyes and his bright carnivorous smile. 

She refused  to be intimidated by him. It was obviously what he wanted. She had not been afraid of twenty-three blood thirsty teenagers in the arena, she won’t be afraid of a sick seventy year old man.

“ _ I won your games. I guess I earned some kind of reward.”  _ She answered irreverently,  looking at him straight in the eyes. 

T here was a beat, during which his smile faded only to come back in a more genuine smirk. He must not have been used to be talked that way. They were  all crawling, not to say shitting their pants, in front of him,  so insolence must have been a refreshing novelty to him. 

So she smirked back, not at all shaken by his attitude.

“ _ You did played, and won the Games Camille, and, I have to admit it, beautifully.”  _

_ Beautifully?  _ Not really the adjective she would have chosen but… 

“ _ But That wasn’t my question. I meant do you know why you were in the Games, in the first place?”  _

She frowned at that. Why? Because she had been sorted out, like everyone else here. What was even the point of this question?

“ _ Chance, like everyone else, right?”  _ she answered, trying not to show her slight hesitation. 

His smirk disappeared, replaced by a focused serious on all his face. The banter was over, troubles were truly coming now.

He pushed a button on his computer keyboard, and the screen lightened on the picture of a woman. She was somehow familiar, with her outrageous perfect makeup, her red hair and her couture dress. Someone from the staff she must have briefly crossed path with before the arena.

“ _ Do you know who that is?”  _ the voice tore her from her observation. 

“ _ No. Should I?”  _

“ _ This is Euphemia Trinket, District Twelve escort…” _

“ _ And in what does that concerns me? I am not Twelve.”  _ she cut him rudely. 

He didn’t answer, simply switched to another picture, zoomed on her face, and resumed his explanation.

“…  _ She joined us recently. Five years ago.”  _ He let voluntarily his word trail. She didn’t see the smug expression creeping on his face when he saw the color leaving progressively her skin. 

It was impossible, she kept thinking, looking right into the sea blue eyes facing her on the screen.  She was barely listening to him. 

“ _ There had been a few… physical alteration, but I am sure you’re not fooled.”  _

Impossible… She was gone… She was…

“ _ I can’t be. You… It’s a mistake. It can be…”  _ she tried but failed at keeping her composure. She wasn’t so smug anymore. 

“ _ Did you see her jump from that cliff Miss Lacroix?”  _

“ _No…”_ she breathed weakly at the reminded of these awful night. 

“ _ Did you find her, Miss Lacroix?”  _

“ _ No...”  _ again. 

“ _ No.”  _ he repeated with the patient/impatient tone of a parent scolding his child after a lie. “ _ You didn’t. You only found a pair of boots, a letter and buried symbolically an empty coffin after a year of unsuccessful  research. ”  _

S he had nothing to retort to that. These were only facts. Naked truths, she had tried to forget for the past five year, slammed back into her face. 

As if the last month had not been hard enough.

“ _ How?…”  _ was the only this she managed to croak. With a little luck the answer would give her time to compose herself back. Not that she would be able to go back to her mask of indifference and coldness. That one had crumbled in front of him and it would never fool him ever again. She was only left with her determination. 

“ _ Let’s just say that one of our agent found her right on time. We needed an escort, and she needed a new start. The deal was easy  _ _ to make.”  _

T hose words stung. She had wanted to go, that was one thing. But hearing that she had left, abandoned her, so easily… For this? 

It was the cold shower she needed to come back to her senses.  She wasn’t the lost twelve years old child who had lost her sister years ago. She was the strong independent and not easily deterred woman she had grown up to be because of -thanks to? - that. 

“ _ And what does it have to  _ _ do _ _ with me? Being here?”  _ she asked, as detached as possible. 

“ _ There were… words. You see, your sister is a recent addition to the staff. She wasn’t raised in the Games like the other Escorts and some Gamemakers. She showed signs of…  _ _ displeasure, confronted to your predecessor’s young age as he entered the… system.”  _

“So… _ I am her… punishment?  _ _ And so what now? I think she got your drift.”  _ she retorted, standing up to take a turn about the room. The view on the garden s was a great distraction  from the answer she was fearing to hear. 

“ _ Now _ … _ I’ll be very blunt with you, Camille. Now, she is well aware that you are her responsibility, and from now on, she will be yours.”  _

S he stopped dead in her tracks. Facing a big cupboard full of crystal glasses and decanters  filled with amber liquids and clear liquors. She took a glass and one of the decanter to justify her sudden halt. 

“ _ Not that one! Not yet…”  _ he all but scream hastily behind her. She stopped her hand an inch away from the sculpted crystal decanter with shining amber liquid, whiskey or Cognac, inside. His precipitation was quite out of character from the man she had talked with until now, and she turned to look at him. His face was… if she didn’t know better she would have said worried, and his hand was hovering over his desk. 

She turned back to the cupboard and pointed another bottle. He nodded, she took another glass and poured them both a drink. This one was limpid and  fragra nt. Gin. Old. 

S he handed him his glass but didn’t sat back in the chair in front of the desk. Instead she leaned against the bookshelves next to the window beside him. 

She would not submit herself to him, she was not a slave. They could talk equally, human to human. He might be a monster but she had not grown to be a good person either.

And now she at least had one weapon against him, and he knew it. She could read on his face he regretted his little outburst when she had almost seized his little  concoction. Poison. It suited him somehow. A snake weapon. 

“ _ So _ … _ What do you want me to do?”  _ she asked with a smile, opening her arms in a wry gesture  of invitation. 

“ _ I won’t lie to you, I like your style.”  _ She couldn’t help an ironic little curtsey and a bow of her head. That was who she was, arrogant and insolent.  But he kept going as if he hadn’t seen anything, even  if the right corner of his mouth was slightly higher than the other  now . “ _ I need you to do something for me.”  _

“ _ Shoot.”  _ she says, turning to admire the view outside. The sun was reflecting on the glass of the greenhouse full of white roses. 

“ _ Are you always so impolite?”  _ he  asks  behind her.  She doesn’t think he is truly angry. Amused more likely. What would he care if a seventeen years old brat was talking vulgarly in front of him? He could have her neck snapped in a click of his finger. 

“ _ When my mother’s not on my back, yes. I enjoy the respite.”  _ she jokes, sipping her  gin . It was far better than the one she had a few times stole n in her father’s study. And it was already pretty damn expensive.

“ _ Anyway”  _ he dismissed the subject and returned to the important part. “ _ I Like I said, I like you. Cold and efficient. And I would like you to work for me.” _

“ _Don’t you have enough guard dogs here?”_ she cut him, more by banter than by true curiosity. If he was asking her, it must have been more than simple guarding duties. 

“ _ You understood me. I want you on something special. Something I can trust you with. And given your… circumstances…”  _ he gave a pointed glance to the screen. “ _ I do believe I can trust you with it.”  _ his predatory smile was back on his smug face, his eyes sparkling. She was trapped, they both knew it. 

It was not her or Ariane. It was both of them of none. 

“ _ Fine. Who?”  _

“ _ Alma Coin. Ex CIA, now Federal. She used to be Alaska’s governor and she took it away from the Games. Now I heard that she was trying to get to me. Fortunately I have enough men inside the government and the Bureau so she hasn’t done any progress. Yet. I want her  _ _ dead.”  _

“ _ And what do I win? Besides my miserable life saved?”  _

“ _Your sister’s. I can guarantee a certain… tolerance toward her. As long as you follow my orders and don’t try anything stupid.”_

She took a second to think about it. It didn’t seem like such a big deal. She just had to find that woman and kill her, it wasn’t like if she was the queen or anything. That was an easy hitman job. Maybe too easy even… 

“ _ At one condition. I can choose my cover.”  _

He raised an eyebrow an opened his hands, waiting for details. 

“ _ I want to keep using my Talent. I didn’t work all these years for nothing.” _

“ _Which is?”_

“ _Organ. Mostly. Piano, harpsichord, anything with a keyboard.”_

He pondered her argument for a second then nodded. 

“ _ Very well. Concert performer can be you exterior cover. Victor and Mentor, as far as the Games are concerned. You are not the only victor to work for me, but you’ll be the only one on that case. Nobody knows but me and now you, am I clear?”  _

A shiver ran down her spine, both from fear and excitement somehow. It was the overflow of information and emotions. The roller coaster between discovering Ariane, well,  _ Euphemia,  _ was alive, that she was an Escort, that she had somehow sentence her to death, that now it was their job to protect each other, that she had to become a hitwoman…  It was making her high and crazy. Power did that to people. 

B ecause yes, he had just made her a slave, but also a weapon and most of all his only ally. 

“ _ And one last thing. You won’t talk a word to her.”  _

_ Ariane… _

If it’s what it takes… 

She came back in front of the desk,  slammed her glass on the glossy wood instead of on the shagreen coaster,  and put on her best smile.

“ _ I’ll bring her heart in a jewelry box.”  _

xxx

_** Four years ago…  ** _

“ _I can’t get to her!”_

“ _ You didn’t try hard enough.” _

“ _You didn’t tell me she was THAT unapproachable! She’s more guarded than the President! I never even seen her damn face! Nobody knows, or can tell me where she is! I tried every approach! The innocent, the political, the police, even the violent way. Ther_ _ e _ _ ’s no use!  _ _ All I  _ _ managed  _ _ do  _ _ until now _ _ is finding more sponsors among the  _ _ pedants that come to my concerts!”  _

T hey’ve been shouting at each others for half an hour now. 

Johanna’s victory had made some noise in the organization. She might have coached her too well. If she had been considered like cold, well Johanna was downright called a monster. 

And now they were words that he would replace her with Johanna. She would never allow that. 

First because she knew Jo wasn’t like that, she wasn’t as heartless as she was under her steel armor.  Then because if  _ she,  _ with all her cunning couldn’t get anywhere, well Johanna the blunt bull wouldn’t get any closer.  And last but not least, because  it was her only way to protect Effie. 

“ _ What do you think I have been doing for four fucking years? Counting my toes? She ain’t stupid! She knows you know! She won’t let her close anymore than she let me!”  _

“ _ So what do you suggest?”  _ he asked to her surprise. They had come to a certain level of trust and respect to each other. She wouldn’t go as far as saying they were friends, but she they didn’t dislike each other as they should. He had spared her some of the horrors of the ‘after Games’ and he had indeed showed mercy to Effie until now. If she had been any other Escort, she would have been long dead… 

But it was the first time  _ he  _ asked  _ her  _ for advice. 

“ _ Let me be part of it. All her men are completely exterior to the Organization, she needs a way in, that’s the only thing she doesn’t have. That’s the best I have.”  _

Well that wasn’t entirely true. She  _ had  _ sent a man in the circuit, a stylist. But he was still on the waiting list for now and it could take a few years to him to enter. 

“ _ Let me in. It will drive her directly to you. Let me organize her little Rebellion. Let me be to her what I am to you. That’s the  _ _ only option I can give you.”  _ she stopped her frantic pacing in from of the cupboard. 

The decanter was not as full as it was the last time she had come here. If she failed, maybe she would taste it. It better be damn good. 

H e took his time answering. Letting her admire every bump and ridge of the carvings on the crystal and the sculpture on the stopper. 

“ _ Louis XIII.” _

“ _I beg your pardon?”_

“ _The Cognac. It’s a Louis XIII.”_

H er french roots shivered at his words. 

“ _ And you ruin it with  _ _ poison _ _? Twenty-five thousand Euros the bottle and you  _ _ play apothecary with _ _ it?!”  _ she shouts theatrically, a hand on her heart. 

“ _ Ricin. Tasteless.”  _ he precises. “ _ Alright. I give you a year to get in and win her complete trust. If you don’t, you know who’ll pay.”  _

S he let out the breath she had been holding until now, hiding it behind her jokes. 

“ _ Thank you.”  _

xxx

_** Twenty-four hours after the end of the Seventy-fourth Hunger Games... ** _

“ _ I need the girl.”  _

“ _ Certainly not.” _

This time he really  _ was  _ mad at her. 

For the leak. Somehow he knew it was her. Directly or not. She could see it in his eyes and attitude. And also in the fact that she had been showed  her very little mercy that year,  as a mentor and as Effie’s sister. She had paid for every of her sister’s mistakes.

S he was taking too long, doing too many mistakes. 

Her time was running short. 

“ _ I just need to get to her. I won’t make any move. At least let me talk to her. I am being watched too now.”  _

A knock on the door interrupted her pleading for life. 

It was uncommon enough that Snow’s eyebrows shot to his hairline. They had never been interrupted. It was not even his official office, it was his secret study. 

No one knew about it except her, him and… 

“ _ Excuse me sir, I ignored you were already occupied.”  _

“ _ Come in, Heavensbee. We are done here.”  _

T he  H ead Gamemarker. 

She could take her cue, she knew she should leave. But she remained rooted on the spot, her hands clenched in tight fists. 

It took her to cross his sharp look with the glint of madness of an angered tyrant to finally move. 

She bowed her head, as was proper, and walked to the door in a daze. 

Plutarch retreated to let her pass, and she met his gaze in a silent plea for help.

He was her last chance. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy this first step in this Part Two!  
> As always, tell me everything, if you liked it or not, and what you think will happen next! I am really happy to be back here with you!
> 
> A quick word to say that the story won’t be updated as often as it was this summer. I’ll try to stick at one chapter a week!  
> xxx


	26. Chapter 26

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here comes this new chapter! As always, I hope you’ll like it! Forgive me if there are some mistakes left, I’m sick so I can’t guarantee my proofreading…

**Chapter 26**

It was so strange to be back.

Back home.

Back in a false feeling of normalcy.

Effie and Haymitch had brought them back a couple weeks ago now.

With the strict order of playing their roles.

They had officially ran away together out of love. A lovers’ fugue. ‘ _Eloped’_ , had written Effie on the file, in an attempt to add some romance to it… But the Capitol wasn’t Vegas or Gretna Green…

It was just another way to make sure they would keep acting even here. A way to keep control over them.

They were trapped in a double lie. They had to be perfectly happy, and perfectly happy _together._

Katniss wasn’t fooled. Even here, at _home_ , they were closely monitored.

There were black cars and men in suits following them everywhere, occasionally taking pictures. They weren’t even trying to be discrete.

So they followed the orders - ‘ _advice’_ \- Haymitch had given them. Walking and eating together, holding hands, having _moments._

Peeta’s constant presence around her was new and … strange. It was annoying to have to spend all her time with him, but it was also reassuring. He was the only one who knew what was in her head.

The only one who understood her shivers and to hold her hand in comfort when they crossed path with one of the new Sophomore, with her black skin, her black eyes and her braided hair. As she was the only one who knew the reason behind his sudden departure from the football team and his new habit of wearing long pants and high socks and boots.

She still had to go back to her archery training herself. Gale was on her back about it, and the permanent feature of Peeta in her life wasn’t helping his bad mood.

“ _What happened? One day you don’t talk to each other and the next you disappear_ _all summer_ _together?_ _And now you’re like a couple of those inseparable parrots! What the fuck happened Katniss? Did he force you? Did he… ?”_ he had screamed at her one day after cornering her on her way back home.

“ _Don’t talk about him like that! Nothing happened Gale, it’s just… It’s just like that now! So you can accept it or_ _keep avoiding me_ _! I won’t change my mind!”_ she had answered, speaking loudly, eyes scanning her surroundings for eventual spies or cameras. She was well acquainted with their talent for hidden cameras and microphones now. They were everywhere.

“ _I’m not the one avoiding you! I tried to talk to you! You never came back to the Club, it’s the only place we can meet now that I graduated! Why didn’t you come back?”_

“ _I…_ _I… I had other things to do… I’ll come back.”_ She had promised, not knowing herself if it was a lie or not. She was afraid. She wasn’t sure she could shoot ever again. She could still hear Cato’s screams and the noise of her arrow hitting his chest, silencing him forever. She could still feel the adrenaline of the first time she had killed, when Rue…

“ _Katniss? Katniss?!”_

Gale’s hands were on her shoulders, and she realized that she had spaced out, lost in her memories of the Arena. She was shaking and she could see that the skin of her hands had gone white.

She was trying to calm her breathing, Gale still trying to capt her attention, when she felt a strong grip on her arm.

“ _Katniss? Are you okay?”_ that voice made her head snap toward his owner. She took his hand and nodded.

“ _Yes. I’m … I’m just tired. Can you walk home with me?”_ she asked, clutching his arm.

“ _Yes, of course.”_ he answered, wincing at her strong grip. “ _Gale.”_ he nodded in his direction, and that made Katniss fully come back to herself and remember his presence.

“ _Yeah, bye Gale.”_

Peeta’s intervention could pass for a little jealousy scene, it would make their day…

She talked about going back to the Archery club during their walk home, and they agreed on the fact that she should go back, at least a few times. They agreed that it would be better to try on the targets Gale and Katniss had installed in the woods first, before doing it in public. With Peeta around of course.

They walked for twenty minutes to what they called the _Victors’ Village._

It was a brand new residential complex of eight identical whites houses, surrounded by a wall with only one gate to enter or get out, up the hill above the Town. And, of course, it was well equipped in CCTV…

It had been constructed this summer in record time, with a money the little mining town certainly didn’t have before they left.

The Town Council had been _so generous_ to offer to rent one of the house to the Everdeens after their little house had mysteriously burnt one night -’ _after a short circuit’_ the papers had declared. And Peeta’s disability financial help for his leg was just enough for him to rent the house facing hers, now that he was -they were, like all the Victors – emancipated.

How convenient.

She left Peeta at his gate, his leg was still painful after a long walk, and got back to hers.

She entered her house to find it silent, except for the buzz of the fridge coming from the kitchen.

“ _Mom?_ _Prim?_ _”_ No answer.

She climbed the stairs to the first floor. The door of her mother’s bedroom was ajr and she could see her sleeping form above the covers of her bed. She turned to her sister’s room and entered without knocking. “ _Manners!”_ would have said Effie.

“ _Hey Prim!”_

Prim jumped on her seat and dropped the pen she had in her hand, while closing hastily the notebook she was writing in.

“ _Katniss!”_ her smile was strained. “ _Already here?”_

“ _Already? It’s past five, I’m not really early._ _What were you…?”_ she stopped in front of the desk. That red notebook again. The one where Prim was collecting all the information she could find about her and Peeta’s disappearance.

“ _Prim! I told you, there is nothing to investigate! I was with Peeta, alright? I was just with Peeta!”_ she said, shaking her little sister a little too violently by the arm, before dropping on her knees to hug her tight. “ _I was just with Peeta, do you understand? That’s all! That’s all…That’s all...”_

She would repeat it again and again until she stops her investigation. She would not let her sister put herself in danger, never. It wasn’t her role to do that, it was the police. And they both knew they wouldn’t do anything…

“ _Okay, okay Katniss…”_ she whispered, stroking Katniss’s back to calm her. “ _Kat, you’re crushing me...”_ she laughed.

“ _Sorry. Sorry. You okay_ _little duck_ _?”_ A thousand images of her sister crushed to death in every possible way were dancing behind her eyes. She had seen so many horrors, she had no problem imagining even more now.

“ _Yes. Come on, let’s go make dinner.”_

xxx

The next Saturday, she met Peeta at the fountain in the middle of the complex. Her bow and quiver on her shoulder, and her stomach in a tight knot.

“ _You’re sure you wanna do this?”_ he asked her.

“ _Yes._ ” she answered with all the confidence she could find. But she wasn’t so sure, she was doing this for Gale, he was his best friend, she couldn’t loose him. She wasn't considering telling him the truth yet, but maybe one day… In the meantime, she had to act normally.

“ _Alright, let’s go.”_ he took her hand and they walked through the gate and to the woods.

Katniss and Gale had built themselves a little ‘headquarter’ in the woods years ago. It consisted in a little shack where they kept some supplies and tools, chairs, a tarpaulin in case of rain and some targets to practice their archery. They used to spend days there together, away from the civilization, away from their troubles. Just being happy alone together.

It was _their_ place. Neither she or him had ever taken anyone else there. She was sure we wasn’t going to like Peeta’s presence but she couldn’t do it without him. If she had a flashback… She could hurt Gale, and he wouldn’t know how to stop her.

She was a monster.

“ _Katniss?”_

She realized she had stopped in the middle of the muddy track and that Peeta was waiting for her a few steps in front of her.

He had let go of her hand the moment they had entered the woods, leaving the possible spies and cameras behind.

“ _Which way?”_

“ _Oh! Hum, right. Straight on ‘til the oak stump.”_ she answered distractedly.

She caught up with him and they walked side by side to the shack.

She was feeling better with him close, it was still hard to be in the woods. They looked so much like in the Arena, same trees, same climate, same… flowers.

She had forgotten.

She had forgotten the white flowers blossoming in the clearing next to the hut…

“ _Katniss? Hey, what is he doing here?”_

“ _I’m accompanying her. Do you have a problem with that?”_

“ _I didn’t ask you. Katniss?”_

“ _Katniss?”_

It was the strong grip on her arm that startled her.

She had spaced out again. She had been back there for a minute. She could see Rue’s body lying in the ray of light in the middle of the clearing.

She was cold. An inner cold, the kind of cold that spread from your heart to the rest of your body. The one that comes when your blood turns blue. The fear, the shock…

“ _Katniss, Katniss, you’re back, you’re safe.”_ Peeta was whispering from the corner of his mouth, squeezing her arm tighter to attract her attention. She turned her face to him, then toward Gale. His face was closed, his jaw clenched.

“ _Yeah, he… he wanted to see the hut. I didn’t think it would be problem.”_

He nodded, a beat to late for him to be truly _not_ bothered by Peeta’s presence, and gave them a sign to come closer.

They walked to the chairs he had settled in front of the shack.

“ _Do you want to shoot now?”_ he asked her. His gaze lingered on their entwined hands for a second too long, and he abruptly turned his face away.

“ _Hum, yeah. Okay.”_

“ _I’ll wait here.”_ Peeta said, letting go of her and nodding toward the chairs.

The targets weren’t far, only partially hidden by a few trees. He could still see her, but not hear her – surely unpleasant but necessary – conversation with Gale.

“ _Why did you take him here?”_

“ _I told you. He wanted to come and I had no objection.”_

“ _Yeah, but I do! What is it with him? You didn’t even knew him a few months ago and now you’re… glued together! I don’t like that, Katniss. I just want to protect you!”_

She couldn’t help scoffing at that.

“ _I don’t need your protection, I’m a_ _big girl Gale_ _._ _I don’t need a knight in shining armor._ _”_

“ _But you need your Prince Charming everywhere you go...”_ he muttered, aiming and shooting his arrow.

She shivered at the sound of the weapon in the air and at the shock in the wood. But nothing more.

“ _It’s not like that… You.. You_ _would_ _n_ _’t understand…”_

“ _At least, y_ _ou could explain._ _Should we invite him too for Christmas?_ _”_ He asked bitterly before shooting his second arrow.

“ _Gale_ … _I won’t even be here for Christmas anyway...”_ December was for Victory Tour…

“ _You’re kidding me? Don’t tell me you’ll be with him...”_

Her silence spoke for her. She couldn’t explain him…

“ _It’s_ _your turn.”_ He told her harshly, not pursuing the last subject any further.

Her turn to shoot he meant. That was what she was there for after all.

Her heart began hammering in her chest as she raised her arms, aiming her arrow on the yellow center of the target.

It wasn’t a human being. It was a round piece of wood they had painted blue, white, red, and yellow. She had painted those herself.

There was no reason to be afraid.

And yet.

The moment she released the string from her finger, the moment her arrow was freed, the target morphed into a boy.

Her surrounding blurred.

The only thing she heard was the crush of her arrow in his chest.

The only thing she saw was his blood spilling from the wound and his body falling to the grown in a thud.

His empty eyes on her.

Marvel.

She fell on her knees and screamed. Closing her eyes and holding her head, scratching her scalp with her bitten nails.

Panicking.

She was back in there. All the sensations of her first kill filling her once again. Like in her nightmares, but this time she was awake. And it was a hundred times worst.

“ _Katniss! Katniss!”_

“ _Katniss come on, come back!”_

“ _What’s wrong with her?”_

“ _Katniss, shh shh. Katniss look at me, look at me.”_

“ _Katniss what the fuck?! What’s the fuck is going on?!”_

“ _Stop yelling! You’re not helping!”_

“ _Don’t tell me what to do!”_

She was hearing them but her brain couldn’t process what they where saying. She was vaguely aware of Peeta’s hands holding hers and tugging her to him, but she wasn’t completely there.

Like in bubble, inside it was the arena, and she could here and see them outside. Inaccessible. She knew she had to go back to them but she didn’t know how.

The bubble burst the moment her eyes locked with Peeta’s.

“ _Come on look at me, you’re back, it’s over. It’s over…”_

“ _I did it … Peeta… I did it… Rue… She’s…”_

“ _Shh…_ _It’s over Katniss. It’s over now.”_

She let her head fall on his shoulder. Her breathing was erratic so she tried to match his.

They were together. Gale was there. They were in their secret place.

She wasn’t wearing her Games outfit. She was wearing her own leather boots, with the jean she had bought last week with Prim, and her father jacket.

The air was cold on her cheek, and she could smell the fumes of the mines and factories nearby.

She was back, she was home.

“ _Can you stand?”_ she nodded, raising her head to look at him and show him she was back. She didn’t dare look at Gale.

“ _Hey! No no no! Don’t go like that! Tell me what’s going on!_ _Tell me what the fuck just happened!_ _”_ Gale yelled behind them, not happy being ignored like that.

“ _Nothing happened Gale…”_ Peeta begun.

“ _Nothing happened?! Don’t fuck with me Mellark...”_

He made the mistake of catching Peeta by the collar of his jacket. Peeta immediately let go of Katniss to turn around and pin Gale to the nearest tree by the throat.

“ _Peeta!_ _N_ _o!”_

His face was distorted by anger and fear. Like her, he was acting on instinct. Reacting to a threat.

“ _Peeta, he’s no threat. Let him go.”_ she coaxed him back, more softly.

His head shot to her and his gaze softened. He looked back at Gale and his hold on him slackened. Gale dropped to the floor and Peeta recoiled, looking truly distressed.

“ _Katniss, stay away from him! He’s crazy!”_

“ _Drop it, Gale!”_ she said taking Peeta’s hand before finally turning to him for the first time since her panic attack. “ _Please. Nothing happened._ _Forget all this. Please.”_

She was pleading him with her eyes, and he didn’t say anything. He just looked at them walking away from him, with mouth in a disgusted and horrified grimace and his eyes shining with betrayal.

They came back to the Village in a loaded silence.

They were certainly thinking about the same thing. They were lost, destroyed. Too damaged to live normally ever again.

Whatever they’ll do, hear, see, they would see the Arena again. Live it again. And again…

And they couldn’t say anything to anybody but each other.

How _lucky_ they were to have each other. She could imagine what it was to live with this burden alone.

But they needed some help. They needed to talk to someone who could help them, and if they couldn’t go to a therapist…

Peeta put a cup of coffee on the table in front of her, and spoke before she could finish to form her thought.

“ _We should call Haymitch.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, what did you think? Did you like it? Can you feel how much I loooove Gale?   
> Tell me everything! xxx


End file.
